Where There's Smoke
by JustAnotherFallen
Summary: (Set during TDKR) They say that there is a calm before the storm and Stella Sterling has been feeling it. As an archivist and history buff she has seen the patterns that Gotham has to hold. People call her paranoid except for a select few, including childhood friend John Blake. As the storm rises, what can the ordinary do to save millions? Rated M for future language, violence, etc
1. The Web of Friendship

**Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with the Dark Knight Trilogy, nor do I claim to hold any ownership over anything but my own characters.**

* * *

I leaned my hands against the window of the squad car, smiling at the officer inside. "Looking to have some fun, Officer…" I squinted at his name plate, "Blake?"

The officer in question rolled his dark brown eyes at me. He was an attractive man, with a young face. His hair was dark brown and cut short like most on the beat. He looked back toward his paperwork. "Why do you always do this?"

"Oh, John. When are you going to learn that my favorite past time is bothering you?" I smiled at my friend. The first time I had ever done this he had freaked out for a full three minutes before realizing I was teasing him and not moonlighting as a prostitute.

He sighed and shook his head. "Oh, I learned that years ago. Now, can I give you a ride home?"

"You know you do not have to pick me up from the bar every Thursday. I am more than capable of getting home. Though I how could I turn down a free ride?" I laughed and walked to the passenger side, sliding in. "Where's Ross tonight?"

John turned the engine back on, pulling away from the bar. "I dropped him off already. I figured that you might break someone's fingers tonight and he didn't think he could keep a straight face if we had to detain you again."

I slunk into the seat. "To be fair that only happened once and he was threatening his ex-girlfriend. From what I remember it was the most you and Ross had done in weeks. You should thank me for keeping you on your toes. What fun would you have without me?"

John's eyes flicked to me and just shook his head without responding. Smart man.

Gotham was a city of drastic seasons. We had seen immense depression, a boom of productivity, fear from the mob, fear from the Joker, and then a crime exodus. The streets had been quiet since the Dent Act had gone into place. Some thought too quiet and I tended to agree. When things grew too quiet there was always something brewing. I tended not to share this thought all that often. Most thought I was just looking for problems. John thought I may have been a bit paranoid, but he did say I had a point. He wasn't as interested as I was, but that was just John. The past was my area, and John was somewhat indifferent about the future. As long as he stayed in the present things would be okay.

John Blake was one of my best friends from childhood. He also happened to be the only one who stayed with me in Gotham. I was proud to have watched and stood beside him rise above his troubles. His mother died when he was just a kid in a horrible car accident. Thankfully he didn't remember it well, but he remembered his father being killed. His father was in deep with a gambling debt and got himself shot. The worst part was that he'd been shot in front of his son. John had to watch as his father bled out in their apartment, leaving him an orphan. I met him once he had gone into foster care and came to my school. He was angry, most kids would have been. Despite his anger, we became fast friends. Maybe because I didn't like the other kids anymore than he did. Funny how a friendship could start based on disliking people.

My father, Donovan Sterling, had been one of the cops called to the scene when John's father had been killed. He had become a kind of hero for John and he came over whenever he could. After a while it got to be quite often because his foster parents were losing an interest in him. I remember the night John learned that they were bringing him to St. Swithin's, the boys home. He was very calm when he called me to say goodbye. Calmer than I had been.

I cried to my father asking if we could take John in. One thing about my father was that he did not like saying no to me. I think it was had for him to say no. It had just been the two of us since my mother had run off when I was four. I never asked him for expensive toys or really for much. Honestly, the only things I ever remembered begging for were movies. So when I had asked him to help John, I hoped he would say yes. I could see it in his eyes that he wanted to help, but we just couldn't. I found out later that my father had seriously looked into it, but had been turned down. Apparently, a single parent household was not suitable for foster children. Apparently, the rules overlooked the fact that there was someone that actually wanted to take a kid in. Go figure.

John moved into St. Swithin's, but thankfully we stayed close. My father volunteered there whenever he could and I went along. He coached the football and would go to help out Father Reilly in whatever way he could. I was always happy to go because we no longer went to school together. My father was there on his days off helping Reilly chaperone, while I tagged along and made friends with the boys of St. Swithin's. It was in that move to the boys' home where I saw a change in John. The anger was still there, I did not expect it to disappear, but it changed. He channeled the anger into productivity. He excelled in school and was rewarded with a scholarship to the all boys' high school.

This thrilled me. This meant I was able to completely make fun of him for being dressed up on a daily basis. For another, it meant we saw each other more. I was enrolled in his sister school and we took the train to school together every day. Being the only boy in St. Swithin's to go to the private school meant that he spent more time outside of the home with Father Reilly's blessings. Which meant when he wasn't with his baskeball team, he was at the apartment with my father and me. John would help me in math and I would help him with history. It was during one of our train rides that he informed me that of his intentions to go into the police academy. I was quite surprised because I had always thought he would go on to be a lawyer. I think it was because he seemed so disgusted with the system that I thought he wanted to be higher up to change it. He told me that it was my father that had inspired him. My father was one of the few left on the force that wasn't crooked. John wanted to work the beat and be a bit more hands on with the change. Aside from that he said he did not have the drive to continue his education, which had earned him a very confused look.

"_Yeah, yeah, I know that look. I'm smart enough and I was their pity candidate for the Wayne scholarship. I would have been an idiot not to take it. It's a good school and I can grab a few college credits since I played with my schedule. The academy lets you sign up at eighteen, but they like it if you've got some criminal justice classes behind you. This is my way of speeding up the process." He smiled. "Now close your mouth, Stella, people are starting to stare." _

He made good on it. He went through the academy in no time. We had celebrated his year on the force a few months ago with his partner and a few others from his class. Drinking with cops was a wonderful pastime, until you had to get them out of the bar. Ross' wife came to get him and I waved John off into a cab with some girl he had picked up. I threatened two of his friends that attempted to grab my ass and had called it a night. I woke up in the middle of the night to several text messages from a very drunk John, thanking me for helping him score. The next day I got my pleasure from checking on him in the worst hangover state in the world. I offered to make him breakfast and found pure joy in banging around the kitchen as loud as possible. There was a reason we were best friends.

John pulled the car in front of my apartment building, frowning. I lived on the outskirts of Midtown, something he had never been thrilled with. I was apparently too close to the Narrows for his liking. My father had died shortly after John graduated the academy leaving me to figure out my next step. I sold off the apartment and found a small studio with much cheaper rent. It meant my bank account was a bit larger and I had the opportunity to do a bit more. To John the daughter of a detective and only "family" of a rookie cop should no better than to live in this area.

John got out of the car and walked with me up the front steps. "How's work?"

I walked through the doors, toward the elevator and turned to him. "You are aiming for a beer right now as payment for the free ride. I'll tell you about work only if you can can promise me you aren't using that question to see if I am thinking about moving further into Midtown."

John hit the button for the sixth floor and crossed his arms. "I know that things have been quiet, but it doesn't mean you need to stay here. Come on, Stella. You said you weren't going to stay out here for long. You told me a year ago that you needed something cheaper while you figured something out."

I tied my hair up, fishing for my keys in my purse. "I did, but things change. I'm quite happy here. It's cheap and I don't even have to walk a full block to grab train." The doors dings and I stepped out. "John, I appreciate that you care. It's sweet, really. But I am perfectly fine."

He took my keys, unlocking my door. "Stella."

I tilted my head mimicking his tone. "John."

He sighed and pushed the door open. "You need to move on. Stop picking fights at the dive bar and wearing dresses that I'm still curious how they cover your ass." He tilted his head motioning toward my hemline.

"Nice change of topic." I leaned against the counter with a smile. "Checking me out John?"

"I…no. I mean you have a big ass. A small ass. I mean a nice ass." He started muttering, neck turning red.

I opened the fridge and pushed a beer into his hands, grinning. "Man, I have not been able to break your speaking ability in so long. I did not know I still could."

He glared at me and shrugged out of his coat. "One beer. One movie. No teasing or lecturing each other for the rest of the night."

I laughed. "I agree. Now let me just grab sweatpants. Honestly, I cannot sit like a lady in this dress."

* * *

I sighed and slouched in my chair. I had left for a long lunch and came back to a thick pile of folders on my desk. I had already finished a list of request this morning. I still was not sure what was going on this week that everyone had been flooding the office with work of an archivist just never ended, it seemed. Especially a newly promoted archivist. I had kept that from John during his short lecture last night because I knew it would have emphasized his push for me to move. This morning I realized it may not have been such a bad idea as I saw another poster for a missing teenager at the train stop. Kids ran off all the time. Some were tired of their home life, some just ran off to find work, and others just wanted to get the hell out of Gotham. That was normal, but the growing trend was starting to worry me.

I stared at the files when there was a knock at my door. "Miss Sterling?"

I looked up to see Yvette, one of the interns, standing in the doorway. "Hey Yvette, what can I do for you?"

"There's a man here to see you."

I rose an eyebrow. "Did he give you a name?"

"Will Commissioner Gordon do?" The voice held a good amount of humor in it.

I rose to see Jim Gordon standing behind Yvette and smiled. "By all means Commissioner, come in. Yvette can you bring us some coffee?"

She smiled and nodded as Gordon took the seat across from me. "Sweet girl."

"She is. Though she's absolutely scared of disturbing me. I'm never quite sure if that's a good thing or not. What can I do for you?"

"I am in the need of some files."

"I'm always glad to have a real visit, but you know that a phone call would suffice." I gave him a look. "There is something else you're leaving out here."

"This is unofficial business and I would like to keep this a bit quiet. There have been some rumors going around that I do not like that much. Can you get me some city blue prints?"

I paused and leaned forward. I liked Gordon, he was a good man and my father had trusted him. They had worked together during the Joker fiasco and were goof enough friends that I use to watch his kids growing up. I was glad to see how far Gordon had risen and knew my father would have been pleased to see him climb up the ranks properly. "How big of an area are we talking?"

"I need some maps of the city with more detail than those I can buy at the gas station. Specifically one with the sewer ways."

I paused. My fingers had been poised over my keyboard until he mentioned the sewers. "The sewers."

"You've heard something too." He was watching me closely. He was about to say something else when Yvette came back in with the coffee.

"Do you need anything else Miss Sterling?"

"No, thank you very much Yvette. If you could just close the door on your way out that would be great. The Commissioner and I have some catching up to do."

Yvette nodded to us both and shut the door quietly as she left.

Once the door was shut, I turned from the computer. "Little whisperings, but I hadn't looked into anything closely. There are posters around my area of kids that went "missing", but they never last too long. You can never be too sure if they ran off or...something else. Gordon, what's going on?"

"I just got a call in from two of my officers. A body was found outside of the sewers, but it wasn't one of the regular homeless. It was a teenage boy."

"One of the missing?"

Gordon sighed and took off his glasses. He rubbed the bridge of his nose looking tired. "No. Well, at least not officially on record. One of my officers recognized him as a boy from St. Swithin's."

"Blake…"

Gordon looked up. "You know him?"

"Oh crap." My phone started ringing. "I'm sorry, I have a feeling I'm going to need to take this." I recognized the number and picked up. "Hello?"

"Stella? This is Father Reilly."

"Hello Father. I had a feeling this was coming. John just left didn't he?"

The pastor sounded surprised. "He called you?"

"No, I got the news from another source. How bad is he?"

"He's bad Stella. Jimmy was one of our older ones. Just past sixteen. John hasn't been here as much and I don't think he realized how much things have changed."

"What do you mean?"

"We're running out of resources. We cannot keep boys after sixteen anymore. We try to least to give them a place to sleep at night now and then. We usually help them find small jobs, but our funding just isn't what it once was. Once they age out…they have to leave. John took it hard. Harder when he went to see Jimmy's brother Mark. The kid just turned eight. John didn't look good. Just…go check on him tonight, Stella. Please."

"I will. Thank you for calling." I hung up the phone and looked at Gordon, back to business. "I can see what we have, but large plans like that are most likely locked up at Wayne Enterprises. I know part of the system runs close to the building so when it comes to being near the foundation of our city's center…well, I think they prefer to keep it close to the vest. Now, why the sewers? Why now?"

Gordon looked at me carefully. "Something isn't right Stella. I can feel it in my gut. Something is going on in the sewers." He stood up and headed toward the door. With one hand on the knob he turned back to me. "Put in a request and send it to Lucius Fox. Add my name on it. Send it directly to his office. It may speed things up."

"You want me to send a message straight to the President of Wayne Enterprises. A message asking him for blueprints of a system that runs through this city and possibly under the main towers that if in the wrong hands could bring down our city."

Gordon looked at me with a small smile. "You're moving up in the world Stella. Your name and title will come in handy for a while. Use them well."

* * *

I heard keys in the door and lifted my head from the couch. There was a pause as the door opened and then the soft swearing could be heard. I smiled and put my head back down. He always knew when I was here.

"How long have you been waiting?"

I rubbed my eyes and watched as John sat in his armchair watching me. "Apparently long enough for me to feel like I've gotten a full night's sleep. What time is it?"

He handed me a beer as he took a long swig of his own. "Thank you for what looks to be a full case in my refrigerator."

I sat up. "Here I was running to break into your apartment before you got home and you kept me waiting. What was once a six pack needed some restocking." I looked at my watch and my eyes widened. "Witching hour? Hells bells, John. Where have you been?"

He took a breath and relaxed his body, sinking properly into his armchair. "Father Reilly called you."

"He did which is one of the reasons I'm surprised you came home so late. What else happened tonight?"

John closed his eyes and gave a wry smile. "Do you ever watch the news?"

"Not if I can help it. Stop trying to change the subject. Spill it. I feel abandoned here. I come over with beer and you left me here for hours."

"If I knew you were coming I would have told you not to bother."

"And leave you to sit and stew? I think not. I was told by a pastor to check up on you. Can't ignore that."

"Aren't you Atheist?"

"Agnostic. Still doesn't matter. Father Reilly still scares me a bit. Now tell me what happened or I'm going to start using your full name again."

John glowered. That threat always worked. He didn't like using his full name for some odd reason. I once asked him about it, but he just glared at me. "Fine. They found the missing congressman tonight. He was drunk in a bar and had gotten shot in the leg. We started going after the men who fled the bar when we went in and they went into the sewers. Then we had a little problem."

I sat up quickly looking John over. No cuts or bruises I could see. He was still dressed in his uniform, which was dirty as hell. His thumb was rubbing the label of his beer, wearing it down slowly. This was going to be a long story. "You're okay."

He tilted his beer toward me. "If I was in any other way you would have been the first call. Being my emergency contact and all."

"Glad you didn't end up in the hospital. If I ever have to respond to one of those calls you had better hope you're dead before I get to you."

"Well, that's comforting. A firebomb went off with Gordon and the rest of SWAT down there. Foley was being as helpful as ever saying we couldn't go in because there was a gas explosion."

"Gas explosion? In a sewer?"

John clinked his beer with mine. "My thoughts exactly. Foley called me a hothead and told me to leave, so I did. I ran down a few streets right toward one of the outlets of the sewer. I found Gordon tangled up in the grate and in pretty poor shape. As soon as I got a hold of him I rushed him to the hospital. They got him stable and the nurses shooed me off to go home. Now, here I am. I figured I'd grab a bit of sleep before heading back out. You want to take the bed?"

I shook my head, leaning back into the couch. "I think dealing with explosions, sewers, and hospitals entitles you to your own bed. It's your apartment, John. All I ask for is a blanket."

"Don't feel like going through my closets"

I closed my eyes with a smile. "Too scared of what I would find."

I heard him laugh. "Such as?"

"I don't know. A dart board with the face of someone we known on it, namely me. An elaborate knife collection. Lube. Something that keeps you occupied and happy." I opened my eyes and looked at him upside-down. "Seriously though. What is your secret to handling your angst ridden times when I am not around to funnel you with beer and charming company?"

John smiled, a dark shine in his eyes, and threw a blanket at my face. "Sex. Good old fashion, mind clearing sex."

I hid my smile behind my blanket and tried to sound disgusted. "I should have known."

* * *

**(John's POV)**

I woke up quickly dressing in clean clothing. There was nothing left to do about my jacket so I would just have to show up at the mansion in a dirty jacket. Not that it should matter. I was in uniform and if a bit of dirt would bother the man I was seeking out, perhaps all really was lost.

I walked into the living room with a small smile on my face. Stella was still asleep on the couch, face peeking out from beneath the blanket. Her deep brown hair was fanned out over the pillow, her face tilted to the side. Her mouth was slightly open, tempting him to throw a piece of popcorn in it like he had done many times before. He used M&M's once, but she had started choking. Killing off his best friend was not at the top of his list of priorities.

Stella really was lovely with one of the most dangerous minds he had ever come across. He chalking it up to all of her reading and seeing the dark side of life. She was all the family I had left outside my brothers on the force. It was the reason I wanted her out of that shithole she was living in. If everything I had found out about the sewers was true, she was too close to the chaos that would emerge any day. If it came to it, I would take her out of there kicking and screaming. Unfortunately, knowing her, it probably would. I smiled just a little wider. That actually might be worth it.

Dozens of homeless teens and runaways were going into the sewers for work according to Mark, the kid from St. Swithin's. Mark was a smart kid and generally caught on to the things that were really going on. It was a mark of kids like them. The masses of orphans. We just knew things better. We could read people better than most and understood things better than the rest of the world thought we could.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Stella stirring. Damn, I really hadn't meant to wake her up. She always knew when people around her were awake. A very creepy superpower I had come to severely dislike over the years. I slowly walked backwards and grabbed my keys from the counter, hoping to make it out before she completely awoke.

"John?"

I mentally swore and turned around to see a pair of bleary emerald eyes watching me. "Go back to sleep Stella. I didn't mean to wake you."

"Where are you going? What time is it? Are you kicking me out?" Even half asleep she could shoot a series of questions at me.

I laughed softly opening the door behind me. "It's early and a Saturday. You don't have work to get to. Just go back to sleep. I need to see someone important."

At "Saturday", Stella had closed her eyes and hugged the pillow a little tighter. "Who is so important that you need to see on a Saturday morning?"

"I'm going to see the Batman."

* * *

**A/N: I like the idea I have going here, so having some feedback before I upload anything else would be really helpful. Thanks.**


	2. The Unsettled Calm

I woke with a start. It took me a moment to remember that I was still on John's couch and not in my own apartment. It really didn't take long. For a cop _and_ bachelor, John had one of the nicest apartments I'd seen. It was clean and rather upscale looking on the inside. It wasn't a high-end building, but John was a firm believer that an interior should surpass the exterior. I rubbed my head wondering why he left so early then paused. "Batman."

I jumped up looking at the door. John had said he was going to see Batman. The Batman. As I moved closer, I saw a post it on his door.

_Yes, I did say Batman. Go home. _

_Oh, and I know about your promotion. We'll discuss that later._

I sighed ripping the post it off. I should have known this was coming. On the reverse side were three apartment numbers in this building that were apparently open. I leaned my head against the door wondering if it would be easier to move, just so he would stop pushing the subject.

* * *

I looked through my apartment later that afternoon wondering if it really might be time to move. Then I remembered something my apartment had that a new apartment wouldn't. I smiled and climbed onto my fire escape racing up to the roof. Everyone needed their little sanctuary and the roof was mine. After moving into a smaller apartment I realized I did not have all the room for some things that I still was not ready to give up yet. I jumped down from the roof's ledge and headed toward the northwest corner where I had set up a large tarp. Underneath the tarp was a large container and freestanding heavy bag. Some people went to the gym. I preferred to use my roof. It was close to home, did not have any annoying people around, and there was not a monthly fee. Well, aside from my rent.

I cracked my neck and dragged the freestanding bag a few feet closer to the middle. I returned back to the container. Inside held my gloves, a yoga mat, sports tape, and several different kinds of body weights. I put my ear buds in and turned on my exercise list. I had never been a huge fan of running. I preferred my yoga and beating the shit out of the bag. Occasionally I would seek out a sparing partner just so I could go up against something that would hit back. It was one of the times I was quite happy to know so many cops. I had a few female sparing partners, which was always nice. I wasn't a fan of self-defense classes, at least not of the ones that I had checked out. They were usually too focused on women's self defense not overall. Not that I had a problem with classes like those being taught, but I found it left too many gaps.

Really all I wanted to do was beat the crap out of things and enjoy myself. One of these days I was going to jump to the rooftops as well. Probably after I decided to start running a bit or when I was drunk enough to have the courage to try. The next building held something that even as a child I found amusing. The first level held a pizza and gun shop while the upper floors held storage units. They were pretty great units. When I first moved I rented one that held half of my belongings. I kept it for things that I just couldn't part with, but currently did not have the room for. The rent was dirt-cheap and the units were clean. The owner was a good guy who was quick to get back to you if there were any issues. The fact that he owned the gun shop also meant he did not take any crap from renters and no one was very worried about theft. One of the nice things about living in one of the questionable neighborhood was the fact that things took care of themselves.

* * *

My cell phone was ringing loudly when I stepped out of the shower. I didn't recognize the number, but it seemed familiar. "Hello?"

"Miss Sterling?"

I closed the door recognizing the voice. "Commissioner? I heard you were in the hospital, how are you feeling?"

"Like I was kidnapped by thugs, fell into the filtering system, and went knocking around the sewers for hours." His voice was strained, but he managed a touch of humor.

I gave a little smile. "Do doing well I see. Can I get anything for you?"

"I need a favor that I need to ask in person. Think you could pay an old man a visit?"

"Commissioner you are many things. Old is not one of them. Can I bring you anything?"

"I wouldn't say no to a cup of coffee that is any grade higher than this hospital piss. Any word from Wayne Enterprises?"

"I left a message with Fox's secretary. She seemed rather confused so I am sure I will hear something soon." I checked my watch. "I'll see you in about an hour."

"Thank you Stella."

* * *

I arrived at the hospital and smiled to the nurse as the front station. "Good afternoon." I caught sight of the stack of folders by her elbow. "Or, I hope it's going better for you."

She gave me a half smile. The life of a nurse never ended. I personally thought they were the center of any hospital and deserved to be treated much better than they normally were. "Well, it's starting to slow down a bit now. What can I do for you?"

"I'm here to see the Commissioner. Jim Gordon. He asked me to stop by and I forgot to ask for a room number."

"Stella Sterling?"

I felt my stomach drop. "Yes."

"Oh sorry, sweetie. I didn't mean to say it like that. Everything is okay." The nurse began to rifle through her papers. "He actually had surgery pushed up, despite his protests. He only agreed when we said we would pass along a message for you." She found the envelope she was looking for and handed it to me. "Here you go. He wrong a long list of things he wanted and a personal letter. He let me know that he was putting his keys in there so you could bring him a duffle bag of clothing and toiletries." She gave a little laugh. "He's going to be here for a few more days, but I think seeing some of his own belongings will get him to settle down a bit."

I sighed weighting the envelope. "Well I suppose that works too. How long are visiting hours?"

The nurse smiled at me. "Don't worry about it Miss Sterling. I'll be here. If you want to see him for a bit and bring him his things, I'll let you in. I'm working a double." She must have seen the look of surprise on my face. "I was serious about his belongings calming him down. The man will get out of here more quickly if he's happy."

I laughed and made a note of her name plate. "Thank you Gretel. Here, I was bringing Gordon coffee, but I think you need it more."

She took the coffee gratefully. "Oh thank you. Take your time coming back. He'll be in surgery for at least another two hours and I don't want you to just wait here. I'll still be here, so don't rush."

I gave her a wave and headed back toward the elevator opening the envelope. I slipped Gordon's house keys into my pocket and unfolded the letter.

_Stella,_

_Sorry that our visit will be postponed. I need you to pick up a few things for me. DO NOT argue when you see the list. Just please do as you're told and put my mind at ease. You'll understand. Your father was my friend and I know I can trust you. When the department was full of crooked officers, I knew he was one of the few left that couldn't be bought. I have watched you grow and you stand as your father's daughter. Like him you cannot be bought and that is why I am reaching out to you._

_I apologize that it had to happen this way, but I need you on my side._

_-Clothing, anything you can find is fine. If you bring multiples that works as well._

_-Toiletries_

_-My guns and ammunition. There is a dummy panel in the back of my dresser. On my key ring you will see a small silver key to open it. Grab the Glock and the Beretta. Grab as much ammunition as you can toss in a duffle bag without it looking too bulky. If you aren't carrying with you hold onto the Beretta. _

_Stella, please listen to me about this. What I saw in the sewers has me thinking that we need to be prepared._

_JG_

I stared at the letter as the doors shut me into the elevator. I wasn't sure if I was glad that someone else thought there was trouble brewing, or worried that Gordon knew for sure that the calm would be over soon.

* * *

I shut Gordon's door behind me letting out a little sigh as I pressed my back against the door. This really was the apartment of a bachelor. Well, more like a man who wasn't sure how to live alone. Nothing matched and there seemed to be a touch missing. A photo of his children was on the fridge, both smiling wide. I continued walking through taking in his home. His living room looked like the room that got the most use. A stack of papers and notebooks sat on the table with a cup of cold coffee keeping them in place. His bedroom was rather bare. The bed looked partially wrinkled and made me wonder if he used it often or just bunked on the couch. I looked at the other room seeing the desk and roller chair that took up the room. It was sad and empty. When Barbra had originally left, Gordon let her. He still was unsure how safe the city was and thought it best they have their time apart. He had even sold their house. I was a bit surprised at this. All he said was that all the good memories had been tainted.

I had given my father a hand as he helped Gordon move into this apartment. I had just gotten out of high school and moving furniture had become a specialty of mine that summer. The room with the desk had once held two twin sized beds and dressers. Gordon had thought for a time that his wife would visit with the kids once things calmed down. Then perhaps he could see them for holidays. Unfortunately, instead of getting the kids, he received divorce papers.

I went back to his bedroom and pushed his dresser to the side, revealing the back. I looked carefully and noticed that there were hinges. This was a serious dummy panel. I unlocked the compartment and opened the door. I had to blink a few times to realize what I was looking at. The Glock and Beretta were mounted at the top of the panel. Underneath were a several pouches of ammunition.

I sighed and grabbed a duffle bag from the closet. I padded the bottom with a coat and two shirts. I placed the pouches of ammunition inside and turned to unhook the holsters slipping the guns inside. I put the Glock in and paused holding the Baretta. I shook my head and tucked it inside the bag, locking the panel back up. I had my father's old Glock and a Stevens 311R sawed off back in my apartment.

I shook my head and finished packing the duffle. I was going into the defense mode before anything had happened. I pushed the dresser back in place and started walking toward the door. I gave a last look behind me and shut the lights. I locked the door hearing the families down the hall making dinner and laughing inside their apartments.

I needed to get back to the hospital to talk to Gordon. If there was a storm coming, I needed to have an idea on what to expect.

* * *

It was late when I got back to the hospital. I gave a little wave to Gretel who was on the phone and pushed a cup of coffee toward her. She mouthed a thank you and waved me on.

I moved inside Gordon's room and saw he was asleep. I noticed that an oxygen tank was next to him with the mask still on it. Apparently he hadn't needed it.

I looked around the room realizing there wasn't a place I could just leave a duffle bag with weapons. I walked toward the small dresser and unloaded Gordon's clothing in there, minus the jacket. I wrapped the guns and ammunition in the jacket, placing them back in the duffle. I grabbed the chair by Gordon's bed and slipped the duffle over my shoulder. I stood on top and popped the ceiling tile. One of the great things about most schools and hospitals was that you could pop the ceiling tiles and hide things inside. It was a bit of knowledge that had come quite in handy over the years. I slid the duffle up and popped the tile back in place. It was close and safe until Gordon was ready to leave.

I hopped back down and debated staying. I looked at my watch and swore. It was too late to still be here. I shut the door carefully behind me and waved goodbye to Gretel.

"Leaving already?"

"I didn't realize how late it was and he's still asleep. It's not a problem. I brought by what he needed and I'm sure I will get an irritated phone call in the morning. Goodnight Gretel."

She laughed. "Goodnight Stella."

* * *

It pushed through my door to see John sitting on my couch. "Make yourself comfortable."

He was sitting on the couch with his feet up. He was wearing an open button down over a dark tee-shirt. His jeans were dark and fit well. Something was up. "Go get changed. We're going to the bar tonight. The fun one."

"Pushy." I paused. "Wait. The fun bar? The one with music. The one that is a step away from being a club? You hate that place. What's the occasion?"

"I may or may not have mouthed off to Bruce Wayne and in the event that I annoyed him enough to get me fired I would like to have a great night out with my friends. Now. Go get dressed and please not one of those dresses you wear to the dive bar."

"Oh John, you ask a lot. You get two choices. I get to wear my dress and be your wingman or I wear something you approve of and scare off girls."

"Ross can be my wingman."

I crossed my arms. "Are you trying to tell me that Ross has been a better wingman for you."

John stared. "Fine. Dress it is."

* * *

I put my chin on John's shoulder at the bar, hugging him from behind. "Buy your favorite friend a drink?"

John laughed and gave my hand a squeeze. "I can do that." He motioned for the bartender as I hid my face in his back. "The usual?"

"Yes please."

For hating this place, John was having a fantastic time. Ross had bowed to my wingman skills as I wrangled a number for John within the first ten minutes we were in the bar.

John handed me my drink and grabbed his own, steering me back toward where the rest of our little herd had grabbed one of the tall bar tables. The club didn't have stools which was fine. We all just crowded around it with our drinks. Ross had brought over the girl I had helped him with and two other friends from the academy, Heath and Cillian.

John motioned us to raise our glasses. "A toast."

Ross shook his head laughing. "Really Blake? A toast here?"

"Yes, a toast here. Now raise 'em. To the Commissoner, may he have a speedy recovery."

We nodded. "To the Commisoner."

John grabbed my wrist as I went to drink. "I'm not done yet. I would also like to toast Stella. Stella was promoted to Head of Archives. So I would like to toast to Stella, may she find happiness in her new position-" He glared at Cillian who went to make a comment, but stopped abruptly. "May she find happiness in her promotion. To Stella, the best friend a guy could ever hope to have."

I clinked glasses with everyone and drank to myself. "Flattery will get you-"

"Everywhere." John interrupted me with a smile.

As a new song came on, the others moved back to the floor giving us some time to talk.

John slung an arm around my shoulders giving me a squeeze. "You deserve it, you know. You've worked hard as hell there and I doubt it would be as organized if you weren't there. Your dad would have been proud."

I leaned into his side with a smile. "I know, John. I know. What's with the super good mood tonight?"

"Forcing a good mood. It's been a shitty week. Your promotion was a good reason to celebrate something."

I turned to face him properly and looked past the smile. He was tired. I took his hand and pulled him toward the dace floor. "Come on Casanova, time for some fun. Show me those famous moves you're always talking about."

John spun me and pulled me toward him. "Jealous of my salsa skills?"

I laughed. "Salsa skills that you just made up?"

He dipped me low. "Is this made up?"

I kept a hand on his chest, the other on his shoulder. "How many times have you practiced this move?"

"Enough that it has never failed to impress and get me a number." He curved me back toward him with a smile. "Still surprised you."

"I'm more surprised that you need me as a wingman."

"Need is a strong word. Prefer is better. Sometimes, I'm just lazy."

I shook my head and walked away from him smiling. "Well you're on your own now. It's time I had a little fun of my own."

* * *

John ran after me as I walked out of the club. "Stella! Come on, Stella."

I zipped my jacket up, stuffing my hands in my pocket. "Fuck off, Blake."

He stopped ahead of me hands out. "That guy was a creep."

"We had this conversation last time. You and the others aren't allowed to get rid of someone unless I ask. This is why we don't all go out together. Things get out of hand really fast and I get angry drunk. I hate angry drunk. Especially when I'm not in my own apartment." I shook my head. "I'm tired. I'm going home."

"Let me walk you back."

"No. I'm mad at you."

"Just because I got rid of that creep?"

"Because you feel the need to get rid of every 'creep'. Go back inside."

"Stella, I can't let you go off by yourself."

I was in his face, voice very low. "Go back inside. 'Let' is not the right word here. Keep talking like that and I will shove my book so far up your ass I'll play chopsticks with your teeth."

"You cannot shut me out, Stella." John's voice held a dangerous tone.

"Don't take that tone with me, Blake. I'm not shutting you out. I need to be mad for a while."

John's nose flared. "Stella."

I shook my head and turned around starting to walk away. "That's all you have to argue with. Goodnight, John."

I heard him take a step, but Ross' voice called out to him. Good.

I stuffed my hands into my jacket. Every once in a while John decided that I couldn't have fun by my standards. According to him I didn't have good taste in men. He had only ever liked one of my boyfriends, Connor. Connor had been killed during the Joker riots, which had been very hard. Since then I dated now and then, but they didn't stick. I think part was John and part was me. John didn't think they ranked to Connor and I was tired of him comparing seemingly nice guys to a dead boyfriend I'd only been with for four months. Honestly, I felt horrible about Connor, but part of me was angry at him. I started believe that the only reason John approved of him was because he was a guy who bent over backward for me and died. I was just tired of trying to meet people and then having John cock block me.

I turned the corner wanting nothing more then my bed. I hated this feeling. I hated feeling like a child and I hated when John and I fought. Especially when we fought over something as stupid as having a bit of fun. After the last fight he swore he would stay out of things. It was a few months ago and it had gotten out of hand. Ross actually threw us both in the back of his car and drove around letting us scream at each other. The worst part was that he had handcuffed us to the back doors. After about thirty minutes and having to listen to Ross blast Journey, I was tired.

_I pulled on the handcuffs and sighed. "John. Can we stop now?"_

_He glared at me, free hand pointing to the cut on his face. "You punched me. You wear rings. You think we are just going to stop because you're tired?"_

_I leaned my head against the window. "I don't want to fight anymore. I'm tired and this is stupid. You have this stupid double standard where I can be your wingman, but if I go find a guy you freak out. We just shouldn't go out to the bar together because this always happens. I'm sorry that I cut you, but I'm not sorry I punched you."_

_Ross lowered the music from the front. "Guys, it's one in the morning. Speed things up please or I'm going to switch to putting Queen's "My Best Friend" on repeat."_

_John leaned his head back against the seat. "So just because I don't think a guy is-"_

"_No, no, no. Not 'a' guy. All guys. Christ, John. You haven't approved of anyone since Connor. And I'm pretty sure that was only because he was terrified of you and bent over backwards to make me happy. You've made him the shining example of a relationship even though we were only together for a few months. He died in a horrible way and I'm starting to think that's why you rank him so high." I felt a few tears fall down my cheeks, glad I was looking out the window. "Can we just call a truce? Or would you like to yell a little more?"_

"_I just want what's best for you."_

"_John, you're being a hypocrite. You meet girls at the bar all the time. Why can't I do the same?"_

"_You want to meet girls at the bar?"_

_I knocked my head against the window._

"_Sorry. Not time for jokes yet. Guys that go to bars only want one thing."_

"_Wanting to get laid isn't a crime John."_

"_But…"_

_I tilted my head toward him, seeing he was at a loss for words. "Just let it go John. If a meaningful relationship comes around, so be it. If not, Christ, just let me have fun."_

"_Is it wrong of me to want you to have something more?"_

"_No, but it is wrong to keep pushing it. Who knows, the next guy I meet at the bar could be a decent guy, you just need to let me make my own choices. And mistakes."_

_Ross pulled over. "Oh thank fucking god. Now, back to the bar and if you start fighting again, I'm just going to cuff the two of you together."_

I walked up the stairs into my lobby with a sigh. If Ross showed up at my door with handcuffs I was going to get arrested for assaulting a police least I would get a few days off.

My cell phone buzzed and I pulled it out seeing Ross' number. "Ross, I don't feel like a friendship intervention tonight. I just want to sleep. I've had a really long day and my body is going to give out if I don't crawl into bed."

"He's sorry."

"No. You want him to be sorry. He's still mumbling about how I need to have better standards and see he has my best interest at heart all while checking out the skinny ass blonde at the bar."

"You sound jealous."

"Watch it."

"He still looks angry, yeah, but he really started tonight with good intentions. He wanted to celebrate your promotion."

"Yeah, I'm aware. He's glad for the promotion and now thinks I can move on to a new apartment that is better for me. One in his own building so he can keep a closer eye on me." I paused realizing all that just came out. "I'm on speaker phone."

Two voices answered me. "Yup."

I hung up and slammed my door behind me. I locked it, put the chain on, _and_ slid the deadbolt. It would take Batman to get me to open the door tonight. And I had no worries about that coming to pass.

* * *

**(John's POV)**

I watched as Ross closed his phone. "I think this might be worse than the time she punched me."

"Well you also weren't using your super controlling voice that time."

I frowned at my partner. "Really? You're taking her side? That's really great man."

Ross shook his head. "You tell us you want to celebrate her promotion. She gets you phone numbers, you buy her drinks, and the second she starts having fun on 'her' night, you go a off the deep end. It isn't about sides. Man, let her have some fun."

I stuffed his hands in my pockets. "He looked like a tool. I can almost promise you that his tee-shirt cost more than your entire outfit right now. Maybe your whole wardrobe actually."

"She's got to make her own mistakes."

"But why should she have to?" I sighed. "Okay, that didn't sound good. It's just, she's my family now." I closed his eyes looking up. There we were. That was the reason right there and I should have known better. "Goddamnit."

Ross squeezed my shoulder and shook his head. "Let Stella have a life. Seriously" He paused, a small smile growing. "Unless there's something you feel you need to tell her."

"Shut up Ross."

Ross held up his hands. "You're sounding pretty defensive for a guy who doesn't have anything to hide."

I fingered my house keys with a smile. "And you've got a tone a little too cocky for a guy who kept his tab open when we first got here. Have fun with that, Ross."

* * *

**A/N: Hey readers. Thanks for coming here. Any reviews and feedback would be fantastic. The more reviews, the quicker the chapters will go up.**


	3. Work Detail

Most people complain about their Mondays being a drawn out boring day. Mine hadn't stopped yet. We had a history class from the local high school come over to learn how to use one of our systems to write up reports about the evolution of Gotham. Each student had a different decade and they could focus on whatever aspect they wished. From what I could see, we were going to see a lot more of them in the libraries in the future. Aside from this project being a huge grade the kids were fascinated with the system. You needed full access to obtain birth records, but you could find quite a lot about the start and growth of the city. With a few strokes of the keyboard you could bring up copies of the first regulations of the city, laws that had been overturned, and a few of our military contracts from the early days of the country. It was amazing.

After the high school had left, I went back to my office. I hadn't spoken to John since Saturday and even Ross hadn't sent me a message to give me a heads up on what was going on. I wasn't even disappointed. I was actually thrilled about this. We never let things sink in and this was a good thing, at least in theory. That or he was going to do something seriously crazy.

Yvette came running into my office looking worried. Well, she always looked a little worried. Yvette reminded me of a cartoon princess. She had deep blonde hair, big doe eyes, and just wanted to help. She always was perfectly dressed and her makeup was impeccable. I would probably be jealous if it wasn't for the fact I appreciated that I was nowhere as high strung as she was.

"Miss Sterling?"

I leaned back in my chair breathing out a sigh. "Yvette. Call me Stella. It's okay. When you come in my office you can relax a bit, I promise I won't be offended."

She gave a shaky laugh. "Okay Miss-Stella. It's just, there's a driver waiting for you at the front desk."

I raised my eyebrow. "A what now?"

"A driver. He said he's from Wayne Enterprises and he's brining you to a meeting with Mr. Fox."

I blinked. "Wayne Enterprises never called me."

"I know!" She looked flustered. "I looked through messages and checked the phones and there was not a phone call. I am so sorry, I must have missed something."

I moved around my desk grabbing her by the shoulders. "Yvette, please breathe. It's okay. Perhaps Mr. Fox just wanted to speak face to face. Just go and tell the driver I will be right there. I'm just going to grab my coat and leave a bit early today, okay?"

"But, Mrs. Morgenstern is still out to lunch."

"Danielle will be back here shortly. You'll be alone for at most a half hour. I have faith in your ability to hold down the fort. Okay, Yvette?"

My words seemed to give her a bit of confidence. At least I assumed so as some color returned to her face. "Yes. Okay. I can do this."

I watched as she smoothed her skirt and headed back to the lobby to meet the driver. Sweet girl, but she really needed to loosen up a bit. I locked up my desk, packed up my bag, and grabbed my coat. I wasn't entirely sure why I had earned a ride to Wayne Enterprises, but I had a feeling this was not about to be a short meeting.

* * *

"Miss Sterling?"

I looked up surprised. I had been waiting outside the office of the President of Wayne Enterprises for about twenty minutes now. "Yes?"

Wendy, Mr. Fox's secretary, smiled at me. She was in her late forties with light brown hair tied up in a sophisticated bun. Her makeup leaned toward a natural look that made her hazel eyes shine. "Mr. Fox will see you now. Can I bring you anything to drink? Tea, coffee, water?"

"No thank you, Wendy. I appreciate it."

She nodded. "Go right in."

I pushed through the door into Fox's office still a bit confused. "Mr. Fox?"

Lucius Fox walked toward me from around his desk holding out his hand. "Miss Sterling. Sorry to have kept you waiting, I had a last minute meeting that I needed to finish."

I shook his hand with a smile. "It is not a problem at all Mr. Fox. Though I admit I was curious about this meeting. I was expecting a simple phone call."

Fox ushered me to sit as he took his place behind his desk. "Well you asked for some important documents Miss Sterling. I wanted to speak to you face to face about them. I was wondering if you could tell me what the archives needed these maps for."

I smoothed my skirt leaning forward just a bit. "I would like to be perfectly honest with you Mr. Fox, my request is not for the archives."

"Oh?" Fox's eyebrow moved up.

"You would have noticed that I added Commissioner Gordon's name to my request. The Commissioner was recently attacked in the sewers as you may have heard. While down there he saw things and came to speak to me about them." I took a deep breath and decided to be frank. "Things have been happening Mr. Fox that I am not sure you are aware of. Perhaps you are, but maybe not. The have been waves of people running off. Not always out of their homes or out of town. There is talk that people are moving to the tunnels and sewers. Gordon seems to think there is a system being set up down there by people who mean to do the city harm. Some may overlook this as paranoia, but I do not. If you and your company are not comfortable turning over any maps, I will completely understand."

"Why would I not be comfortable turning over the plans?"

I noticed the slight turn in his lips and realized that Fox was testing me. "Plans like those could be dangerous in the wrong hands. The last set of sewer plans were from the 20's. These only included the beginnings of the tunnel system, something that has expanded greatly over the years. Today's plans would show the foundation of most of the important buildings in the city, especially Wayne Enterprises. Your building's original structure is quite old, but over the years you've expanded and strengthened the core of the building. I am not an expert in architecture by any means, but I know plans like these could be quite dangerous if left to the public eye."

"You're a very intelligent woman Miss Sterling."

"Thank you Mr. Fox. From you that is very high praise indeed."

He smiled properly. "I like you Miss Sterling. Now, I technically cannot allow you out of the building with these plans for two reasons. The first is for the exact reason you stated. Not that I do not trust you, but things can happen. The second reason is that our plans are currently in our database. We do not have a hard copy and it was actually your message that made me realize we need to update soon. So while you are here, I would be happy to show you some of the plans to see if anything in particular stands out to you. Do you know if there's anything in particular that you were looking for?"

"I am not sure if there was something to seek out in the plans. I would still love to get a look at those plans. There's something not quite right and I just feel that if I can look at the plans I will find what I am looking for."

Fox stood and I followed him to the other side of the room confused. There was no door, just a beautiful waterfall wall. From his pocket he pulled out a small keypad. The water stopped and the back panel turned into the full blueprints of the sewer system of Midtown. I was amazed.

Fox must have seen the look on my face. "Impressive, I know. You should see it when I decided to watch a movie when I work late."

I laughed and moved closer. "This is amazing. When were these updated?"

"From my records the last update was just under two years ago. There hasn't been much construction in the city during that time. Just a few repairs. As I said, it was your message that made me realize we need some updates, but I am sure you can understand that I cannot currently send out surveyors right now."

My fingers brushed through the sewer lines. "Oh I understand. You know, you never realize how delicate a city is until you look at the details."

* * *

Mr. Fox helped me back into my coat. "Miss Sterling, let me just say that your visit has been delightful. Quite informative as well."

"Thank you for having me Mr. Fox. If you ever need anyone to beta any of your prototypes for…well anything I would be delighted to throw my name into the pile."

Fox gave a goodhearted laugh. "I will remember that."

There was a knock on the door and Wendy came in looking flustered. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but there's a problem at the stock exchange."

Fox motioned her in and I paused at the door. "Do you know many people in the stock exchange Miss Sterling?"

"Honestly, no. Though it's a block away from me."

He nodded to me. Apparently, it was fine if I stayed for the news. "What happened Wendy?"

"There's a robbery of some sort. People are holed up inside and the Market chief is beside himself. Apparently, they have direct access to the online trading desk. No one is quite sure, but the police and SWAT are surrounding the exterior."

My hand curled into a fist. Even though I had been surrounded by cops my entire life, I still got worried when situations like this arose. I worried and it wasn't a crime to do so. "I need to go get back. I left my intern in charge and she is very possibly hiding in my office having a panic attack."

Fox looked up with a nod. "I can have my car drop you off."

I shook my head. "Thank you, but no. If there is a situation the streets are going to be blocked off anyway. I know a better way. Mr. Fox, thank you again for your time. Wendy, have a wonderful day."

* * *

I had managed to get back to the office soon enough to see Yvette and Danielle off. We locked up and managed to get Yvette into a cab. Danielle hadn't managed to get back to the office when the situation at the stock exchange first occurred and the amount of squad cars and SWAT teams had put her into a bit of panic. After promising us that she would go straight to bed, we put her in the cab straight for home.

Danielle and I decided it was time to find a bar. I suggested one close to Gotham General Hospital. It was close to where she lived and if I was lucky I might manage to check on Gordon. I had spoken to him briefly and he had not been exactly thrilled that I had not woken him up. He was brief on the phone and mentioned that something on the list wasn't in his dresser. Getting the idea that he didn't want to say anything over the phone I simply told him not to worry. Everything on the list was safely in his room. I had a feeling after that conversation that he was probably sitting in bed trying to figure out where I would have hidden the guns. To be honest I was a bit curious if he had finally figured it out.

My phone rang and I gave Danielle an apologetic look. "Sterling."

"Stella."

"Commissioner, you're sounding much better today."

"You're a very funny girl Stella. Now, where are you? I would like to have a little chat with you if you wouldn't mind."

Danielle pulled on her coat pointing to her watch and blowing a kiss. Time to get home to her husband who would probably be dragging himself home and falling asleep on the couch right now. Eric Morgenstern worked as a high school science teacher. The man loved his job, but you still had to be crazy to teach high school children. Especially when they were allowed open flames and chemicals. He ran the chemistry club after school where he allowed his students to experiment a bit more. Whenever he came home late it usually meant that he had spent at least an house cleaning some sort of spill or mild explosion.

I gave her a wave and started getting my belongings together as well. "I'm close by, I was just meeting a friend for a drink. Oh, and I do have to tell you about a meeting I had today."

Gordon was quiet for a moment. "I will see you very soon in that case."

I ended the call and slipped a tip under my glass nodding to the bartender as I left. It was quite damp outside and I turned the collar of my coat up a bit as I walked toward the hospital.

I stopped briefly in the coffee shop to grab coffee for the long conversation ahead of me.

* * *

I leaned in the doorway of Gordon's room looking at the television. "Okay. I walked four blocks here and only stopped to grab coffee. I'm missing a car chase?"

Gordon didn't look at me. He looked a bit better than when I saw him the other night. A bit of colour could be seen in his face and an oxygen tube was helping to level his breathing. Instead he turned up the volume so that I could hear the reporter's voice.

"People aren't saying much. Frankly, they're too busy, but all signs suggest that what we're seeing is, in fact, the return of the Batman."

Gordon muted the television again, finally looking at me. "Care to have a seat?"

I handed him his coffee still shocked. "He's back."

"Does it bother you?"

"Hell no."

Gordon looked a bit surprised, but pleased. "So what news do you have for me?"

I grabbed a pen and spread a street map of the city I had just picked up on his hospital bed. "I had a meeting with Lucius Fox today."

"Really?"

"Really. There was a car waiting for me outside this afternoon. After having an internal meltdown on the car ride over, the meeting went quite well. For obvious reasons I could not have a hard copy of the map, but Fox let me have a hard look at what we are dealing with. I don't think I really ever put much thought into how damn complex our system was. When I deal with mapping, I usually just deal with the buildings and property lines. The system is…" I shook my head. "Complex just does not describe it. If something ever happened to the buildings we could move into the sewers and not worry about space. Just give me a minute to draw up some things and I'll explain. You can turn the volume back up."

I hunched over the map, making several markings and notes. Per usual I added my own key to explain the symbols I was using. It was one of the few things I was a bit crazy about. I needed my own markings and always needed a note to remember what the hell they meant. It was a good thing I didn't work with maps too often or I would create one of the worst coding systems in the world.

Gordon swore and I jumped. My head snapped up toward the television. "What? What did I miss?"

"All of the cars are after Batman. They let the robbers go."

I blinked. "You mean the men who got into the stock exchange, probably broke into the system, and could crash the economy of the city if they succeeded?"

Gordon's head fell back into his pillow. "Foley is insane. Completely insane."

I stared at the television wondering if John was in one of those squad cars. The helicopter wasn't close enough to see any of the numbers of the cars or plates, so I wouldn't know. I looked at my cell phone debating if I should at least send a message.

"Worried about your friend?"

I looked up with a small smile. "Hazard of my life."

"He's a good man Stella. Smart kid. I have him to thank for saving me. How do you know him?"

"He's been one of my best friends since I was little. We went to school together and we both stayed in Gotham while other people looked to get out. Sometimes it's hard to shake your home. John's my best friend and therefore the greatest pain in my ass."

Gordon rose an eyebrow trying to hide a smile. "So he has your best interest at heart?"

"No, he thinks he has my best interest at heart. When my father passed, I really did not expect John to double his overprotective nature. But, that's just my personal feelings on the matter. He is smart; sometimes I think he might be too smart. He's either going to move up in ranks because of his intelligence or his attitude is going to keep him as a beat cop for the rest of his life."

Gordon look back to the map in my hands, unable to hide his smile. "I knew there was a reason I liked him. Now, what can you show me?"

* * *

I blinked slowly, coming out of my partial dream state. It took a second to realize my neck hurt because I had fallen asleep in the hospital chair by Gordon's bed. I groaned hearing that the whispering nearby had suddenly halted. "Don't stop on account of me."

"I tried to get you to leave, but you kept muttering something about a lack of police protection." Gordon's voice held laughter.

I rubbed my eyes. "Yeah, well I had a point."

"And exactly what would you have done sleeping beauty?"

I moved my hands glaring at John. "You and I both know that I knew the second you walked in."

John relaxed in his chair, a small smile on his face. "Unfortunately, I do know that." He pointed to the map Gordon was holding. "You've been doing some research I see."

"You know that research is pretty much my job, correct?"

"Children." We both stopped, looking toward Gordon. "Back to the map at hand. There is some work to be done." He looked toward the clock on the wall and sighed. It was just after three in the morning. "But you need some sleep first. No arguments. Blake, take Stella home. Both of you get some sleep, you're going to need it."

John and I said our goodbyes and headed toward the elevator, both quiet. We made it down two floors before speaking.

John looked at me sadly. "Stella…"

I moved toward him wrapping my arms around his middle beneath his jacket. I felt him stiffen for a moment in confusion. "What if we just skipped over the making up and just let this one go?"

I felt him squeeze me with a sigh. "I'm an idiot."

"I know."

"You're not making this easy."

I moved my head back from his shoulder looking at him. "I wasn't trying to. I offered to just let it go. Remember that."

He gave me a small smile. "Oh, I'll remember. After you left, Ross was lecturing me and I said something out loud that finally made me see what a jackass I was being. I said you were my family. We are family, but I need to remember you're also my friend. You had your father to watch out for you and you are perfectly capable of handling yourself. I just…sometimes I forget that you had people looking out for you. I think sometimes I prefer to think I'm your protector and forget that you could cause me serious harm if you wanted. So, I am sorry for when I start acting controlling, but sometimes you may just need to let me get it out of my system."

"I know, it's just…It's hard not to argue. You even said it. I know how to take care of myself."

"I understand. I do. Sometimes I just wish you didn't have to. I want to keep you from it."

I gave John another squeeze. "But if you're always there, how will I ever learn?"

The doors dinged and we exited to the lobby and into the darkness of the early morning. We walked in silence until I spotted his car at the front of the parking garage. As I climbed in, I turned to him with a smile. "So how was the car chase?"

John laughed turning on the engine. "I was riding with Foley. That should give you an indication."

I groaned. "Part of me is surprised you didn't veer off from chasing Batman and go after the robbers."

"Trust me. I did think about it. Though I would have gotten fired and I would unfortunately be living on your couch for a while in that case. Plus, getting to see Batman again, even if I was chasing him, was worth it." He smiled, then paused. "I stopped by your office today."

I was surprised. "Really? What for?"

He pointed at the backseat where I could see a heavily padded envelope. "I wanted to get tunnel records for the past year. Your intern went into a mild panic when she realized you didn't house those records, but city hall did. I think it took her all of five minutes to get the file emailed to her and printed out the five hundred pages for me. She really is terrified of disappointing you."

"Why me?"

"I mentioned I was your friend and wanted to see you, but she told me you were out of the office and kept asking if she should call you. You have the strangest effect on people."

"Ha ha ha, John. She's just so worried she is going to do something to lose this internship, which is silly since sometimes I feel like she is more invested than I am. I am a bit surprised she didn't tell me that you stopped by, though by the time I got back Danielle was trying to slip her something to calm her down. The stock exchange fiasco and watching the building by herself for about twenty minutes really did her in."

"Ah, that makes a little more sense now. Where were you?"

"I was meeting with Lucius Fox."

John's head snapped to look at me. I was quite glad we were at a light. "You were what?"

I smiled and squeezed his arm. "Relax your grip. I would prefer you didn't screw up the steering wheel before we were safely in front of my apartment, thanks. Gordon asked me to send a message to him to look at the maps for the tunnels. There is a reason that only the records and not the full plans for the tunnels and sewer system are on public record. Apparently you weren't looking that closely at the map Gordon had. I added what I learned from my meeting. It may help you a bit in your search of the tunnels." We pulled in front of my apartment and I tugged his arm. "Come on and stay over tonight. You've got clothes here so there's no reason you need to drive back home. Come on. Keep me company."

John smiled. "How could I say no to that?"

* * *

**(John's POV)**

I stretched out on the couch rubbing my neck. Much as I hated admitting it, Stella's couch was my favourite. It was deep and well used so that sleeping on it had never given me a problem. I'd spent many nights on this couch over the years and it always felt familiar. This was my second home. Well, Stella's home, no matter what location, had always been my second home.

It was the main reason that I was scared. Most kids growing up in orphanages know better than to grow attached to anything. Unfortunatly, I let down my guard. I had grown very attached to Stella and her life. Her father had been the greatest man I had known and had unofficially raised me over the years. With him gone I was holding on to Stella as my family. What scared me was that one day she would find someone. She was smart, beautiful, and so damn funny. When some guy found her and saw her for everything she was, I was going to lose her. She would have a new life with her own family and I would lose hold of her.

My chest hurt as I thought about it. I didn't like the idea of the future. It meant witnessing things I knew I would hate. Watching Stella date the same guy for more than a few months at a time. See her dress up for him. Watch her as she walked down an aisle in a wedding dress. Seeing her pregnant and having her own family. A family that wasn't mine.

It wasn't jealousy. It was worry. Worry that she was going to be happy without me around. Maybe happier without me.

I got up from the couch and moved into Stella's bedroom. It was shades of grey, something I hadn't originally understood. Stella was full of life and it had seemed odd to me when she chose the colour scheme, but it suited her. The little bits of colour around the room popped against the slate background. It balanced out quite well. She always joked that life was shades of grey so why shouldn't her bedroom be the same.

Stella moved her head from her pillow giving me a sleepy smile. "Bad dream?"

"Something like that."

Stella flipped the covers over waving me toward her. "Come on, bunk with me. It's been a while since we've done that."

I gave a little smile and slipped between the sheets. "Thanks."

She was still smiling, though her eyes were shut. "Hey, I've got my selfish purposes for asking you in." Her foot touched mine, freezing me.

I jerked my foot back, giving her a push. "Christ. Do you take an ice bath before you crawl into bed?"

Stella gave an evil little laugh. "You're a low maintenance space heater. The perfect accessory to any bedroom."

"Oh is that right?" I started poking her in the sides as she squirmed out of my way, laughing.

Her eyes opened and her smile slipped. "What's wrong John?"

"What do you mean?"

"You don't do bad dreams. Not for years. Talk to me."

"It's stupid."

"No, it's not. Speak." Her eyes were now bright and alert.

"I was just thinking that I'm going to miss this."

"Miss it?"

"Well, one day you're going to move on and have a family of your own. Without me."

Stella's brow raised. "Never mind. You are stupid." She grabbed my arm as I went to move. "John. What makes you think that you wouldn't be a part of my family whenever I find someone dumb enough to fall in love with me?"

"Dumb enough? Seriously?" I started to get angry. How could she think that? She joked about it so often it had lost its humour. I hated that she thought the only person that could love her would have to be dumb.

"Don't try to change the subject. Why would you think you wouldn't be a part of my life anymore?"

"Because you wouldn't need me around."

"John, I will always want to and need to have you around. Don't think just because some hypothetical man wants to marry me that it changes anything. Plus who is going to help me manage what I can only assume will be a seriously questionable relationship? Who is going to be my best friend and chief adviser when I make huge decisions? Who will remind me that children should not be allowed to play with swords? Who is going to be my pick of the other man if my husband agrees to a three way?"

I choked, throat going bone dry. "What?"

Stella bit her lip, trying not to laugh. "Oh yeah. Totally worth throwing in that last line." She settled back down and grabbed my hand. "John. Nothing bad is going to happen to us. Gotham could be going up in flames and we would still be in the middle of it laughing and yelling at each other. John, I promise you, I am not going anywhere. You didn't leave me alone in Gotham and I'm not leaving you." She rolled over to face the other way, taking my arm with her. "Now, sleep."

I smiled at the back of her head. I would still worry, of course, but Stella had a way of making things better, at least for a while. I settled back into my pillow and closed my eyes, focusing on Stella's breathing.

* * *

**A/N: I decided to switch things up and do John's POV in first person. I work better that way and I just felt I could add more. I fixed the other chapters to do the same as well.**

**So I uploaded this a bit early in celebration of the Oscars. My normal upload schedule will probably be Mondays and Thursdays. Though I usually already have a chapter or two waiting in the queue.  
**

**One last note. I really do like reviews. I love the fact I have five followers and my view counter keeps going up. But, I will seriously hold the next chapter hostage for reviews.**


	4. Promotions Lead to Disaster

I turned on the coffee pot as I heard John get into the shower. Last night had been odd, but not one of the oddest late night conversations we had had. We had held many drunken conferences in my bedroom and many sad talks. I was worried about how serious he had sounded. He really thought he was going to lose me if I found someone. I guess I understood why he got upset at the club and whenever I met someone. It didn't make his actions better, but it gave me an idea of where he was coming from.

I bit down on a piece of toast opening a folder of paperwork I had brought home. Someone at the courthouse needed me to look over some document and I didn't even remember the topic. I was already ready, but I didn't have that meeting until eleven and didn't need to be in my office until after.

I chomped down on my toast reading through the documents one of the judges had requested. Apparently, there were some old laws regarding property lines that needed to be amended. Probably had to do with the right to shoot your neighbors or something like that. I didn't really care all that much, I just wanted to make sure I had all the files that had been requested.

I finished my toast brushing the crumbs off my skirt. When I first learned I was up for the promotion I was told I would need to expand my wardrobe a bit because of future meetings. I never dressed like a slob, but apparently I needed an expansion. Not that I minded. I liked an excuse to dress up. I had found a new love for pencil skirts, which was great. When you had pretty wide hips and a smaller waist there were a lot of dresses you just couldn't wear. Thankfully fashion from the 50's and 60's was coming back with a vengeance. Today I had gone with a dark red pencil skirt and black blouse. Since I was meeting with a judge and not just a clerk I had even added bold red lipstick to my usual makeup. On a daily basis I normal just went with a bit of eyeliner and mascara to take away from the dark under my eyes. I was becoming quite a fan of the red lipstick. Plus it gave me a little boost to see the double takes I could get because of it.

I poured myself some coffee and filled another mug as John came into the living room. "Elixir of life."

He groaned, hand rubbing his hair to dry it. He grabbed the mug and paused with it halfway to his lips staring at me.

I smiled taking a sip of my coffee. "Yes?"

He composed himself and swallowed a gulp. "Where are you off to today so dressed up?"

"Meeting with one of the judges. The promotion meant I have to dress nicer. So I'm playing it up as much as I can." I turned in a full circle. "What do you think?"

His lips curved into a sly smile. "I like it very much. Reminds me of that show I use to watch with you. What about shoes?"

I laughed. "No, I'm not wearing any heels that you are currently thinking of. I've got a pair of boots that work well enough. It's supposed to rain today so I'd rather not chance it with flats."

John reached around me to grab a slice of toast. "What time do you need to be at the courthouse?"

"Not until eleven, I just didn't feel like sitting around until it was time to get ready. I thought maybe I would visit Gordon for a bit to see if there was anything else he might need me to look up."

John chewed his toast thoughtfully. "Well I was going to see him before I headed into work, so how about we go together? I'll drop you off at the courthouse after we visit Gordon."

"You're my favourite for a reason."

He rolled his eyes hiding behind his mug once again.

* * *

John and I pulled into a spot in front of Wayne Enterprises, both quiet. Our meeting with Gordon had been rather short. Apparently Foley would be paying him a visit and Gordon didn't let us say anything.

_Gordon held up today's newspaper with a frown. "Bruce Wayne is broke. Apparently a bad investment was made sometime during the stock market fiasco that has left him without anything. I do not think this is a coincidence." He gave John a meaningful look._

_I sighed. "We can stop acting secretive. I know John's theory and apparently you seem to agree. But what does this have to do with things?"_

"_He lost everything and there is a meeting today at Wayne Enterprises. I may have made a call to impound his car. I thought it might give you a good opportunity to speak with him, Blake."_

_I tilted my head to the side. "Is there anything else you need from me?"_

_Gordon narrowed his eyes. "Where are they?"_

_I smiled. "X marks the spot. Didn't you ever go on a treasure hunt, Commissioner?" _

_One of the nurses came in and told us we would have to go while Gordon headed to a test before Foley arrived. Gordon glared at me, but I just smiled and pointed up as we left._

_John gave me an odd look. "What was he looking for?"_

"_His guns."_

"_You hid the Commissioner's guns?"_

_I rolled my eyes. "I had to. Can you imagine what the staff would have done if they found out I smuggled in his guns?"_

We got out of the car and waited outside of Wayne Enterprises as the reporters swarmed around the doors. A tow truck was already hooking up Wayne's Lamborghini and I couldn't help but laugh in my head. Expensive cars always looked extra ridiculous when they were being towed away.

I nudged John in the side and nodded toward the building. We could both see Bruce Wayne coming out of the lobby. Now was John's chance.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come back and pick you up after?"

I laughed. "John, I'll be fine. Right after here I'm going to the office and probably straight home. Have fun harassing Wayne." I turned and paused. I walked back toward John, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Good luck."

I turned away and headed next door toward the courthouse with a smile. The kiss was to put John at ease because I know how shitty things had been lately. Plus, I had a feeling he was going to forget that I had just left a perfect lip print on the side of his face.

* * *

**(John's POV)**

I watched her walk away with a smile. It was nice having things back to normal with us again. It made the approaching conversation with Wayne a little easier.

Wayne was standing with the tow truck driver, looking a little lost.

"Need a ride?"

Wayne caught my eye and nodded heading toward me quickly. He didn't seem upset about the getting in the squad car. He didn't even look all that upset about the car being towed. He just looked trapped.

I closed the door behind him, staring down the reporters that had begun moving closer. They lowered their cameras looking a bit miffed.

I got back in and pulled out of the street. Halfway down the street I lowered my visor as the sun glared at us. I gave the visor a little smile and looked back toward the road. Everyone had some personal things in their squad car. I kept a photo of the day I graduated from the academy. It was one of the few photos I had where I was genuinely smiling. I was standing between Stella and her dad, the three of us looking thrilled.

I felt Wayne look at the photo and give a chuckle. "That must be the owner of the lipstick on your face."

My eyes widened and I flicked the look in the mirror. Sure enough there was a perfect lip print on my cheek. Sneaky bitch. "Christ. I apologize. My friend has an annoying sense of humour." I rubbed my cheek with the sleeve of my jacket. It was slowly coming off, but my skin was a bit raw. I was going to kill Stella when I saw her later.

Wayne laughed a little harder. "Don't apologize. It's nice to see evidence of successful relationships now and then."

I kept my eyes on the road, feeling a bit stupid. This was not how I planned this conversation going. "She's not my girlfriend. She's my best friend. As it happens she has to enjoy driving me a bit insane."

"Ah, I completely understand." He went quiet after that.

I started thinking about what would have caused the sudden tone drop. When it came to me and I couldn't tell if I was an idiot or if this was the perfect opportunity to question him. Wayne had been childhood friends with Rachel Dawes, who had died in one of the Joker's attacks. She had been linked to Harvey Dent and was in the other warehouse that had exploded the night Dent ended up in the hospital. Dawes death was very hard for many. She had been a tough prosecutor, but had been extremely well liked. From what I had heard whispered, Rachel Dawes was the one person Bruce Wayne had ever actually loved.

I glanced over at him. He was looking out the window and I wondering if he was thinking about Rachel. "When you began…why the mask?"

Wayne was quiet for a moment and I was worried I had blown my opportunity to talk to him about being Batman. "To protect the people closest to me."

"But, you were a loner with no family." I paused. "No offense."

"There are always people you care about." He lifted a hand and tapped a finger on my photo. "You just don't realize it until they're gone." He sighed. "The idea was to be a symbol. Batman could be anybody. That was the whole point."

I gave him a small, encouraging smile. "It was damn good to see him back."

"Not everyone agrees."

"They will. They'll figure it out in the end."

Wayne seemed to pick up a bit and his tone sounded more interested now. "Got anything on Bane's whereabouts?"

"Yeah, I've got five hundred pages of tunnel records and a flashlight. I've got someone helping me with the paperwork, but I could use some help."

Wayne pursed his lips and nodded. "You know what? Drop me off in Old Town."

I was confused, but nodded taking a quick turn. "Old Town?"

"There's someone I think may be able to help. Selena Kyle. She's flighty, a thief, and I am positive she has connections with Bane."

"You think you can trust _her_?"

"Maybe. We will just have to see." He gave me a smile noticing my surprise. "So tell me, can you trust the person helping you with the paperwork?"

"With my life. Gordon has been working with her on the tunnel system as well."

"Your girl, the one in the photo? She's the head of archives? Miss Sterling, I believe?"

I looked at him for a second, surprised. "You've met her?"

Wayne laughed. "Oh, I have not had the pleasure. Lucius Fox, the one running Wayne Enterprises had a meeting with her last week. He'll be quite glad to hear that she is on our side. He thought so, but you can never be too sure with the clever ones. He was quite interested to see what she would find if we let her into some of our other files."

I smiled. "She's one of the smartest people I have ever known. Stella would have a field day accessing your files, I'm sure of it. The first day she had access to some files that had been restricted to her I actually had to drag her out of her office. Thankfully she was friends with everyone she worked with and they found her more amusing than mad. Don't get me wrong. Stella doesn't have any sanity issues, she just believes that if there is information she can access, she has to do it."

Wayne laughed. "You've got a dangerous one on your hands. Take a right here and it's the second building on your left."

I pulled the car over to the side and watched Wayne get out.

He moved toward my window with a nod. "I'll get a cab back, don't worry about waiting."

"You've got money for a cab?"

Wayne's eyes widened and he patted down his pockets.

I shook my head with a smile and pulled out my wallet handing him some cash. "This should get you there."

Wayne took the money carefully and gave me his hand. "Thank you Officer Blake."

I took his hand with a smile. "Glad to help Mr. Wayne."

Wayne smiled and slid his eyes to my photo again. "You take care of her Blake. Don't let her get away. Trust me."

* * *

**(Stella's POV)**

I waved to Danielle as I walked out the door and saw John waiting for me at the bottom of the steps. He was in nice slacks, a button up, and a tie. He was also leaning against a brown car and had a wide smile on his face.

I paused at the bottom of the stairs. "You're smiling and dressed up. I am very confused and a little worried."

John pushed off the car moving toward me. "Like the new car?"

"Are you going undercover? Is this a getaway car? Are you going to kill me because of the lipstick?"

John pulled me toward him, on hand on my waist the other holding my hand in his. He danced us in a little circle, smile widening. "No, though trust me, I'm working on what to do to you after the lipstick incident. I got a promotion. You are speaking with Detective Blake right now."

I let go of his hands and wrapped my arms around his neck. "Holy hell. Congratulations, John. Oh we need to celebrate!"

"And we are. I'm taking you out for a nice dinner. Just the two of us celebrating our promotions. I want to make up for the other night."

I looked down at myself. "Should I run home and get changed?"

John smiled and opened the door for me. "No, you look perfect."

I smiled and pulled down the mirror. I removed my hairclip and shook my hair out, feeling better. I poked John in the arm as he got in the car. "So how did this come about?"

"Gordon just likes me. Foley is a moron who has done nothing but call me a hothead. I'm not even sure if he knows my name. Gordon decided to promote me and I am reporting directly to him until future notice. So I don't have to go into the department anymore. I'm just going to work out of the car, the hospital, and my place."

"You're living the dream Johnny boy."

"You get to say that once. The next time, I will tie you up and put you in the trunk."

"Kinky."

John's eyes strayed to me for a moment and he muttered something that even in this close of space I couldn't hear.

"What?"

"Nothing. Just. Nothing."

* * *

Dinner had been fantastic. Good Italian food and delicious red wine. I was thrilled I had remembered my lipstick. Whenever I had wine without lipstick my lips turned purple and I felt like a child with grape juice. I had learned my lesson the one time I was on a nice date and couldn't figure out why my date was giving me funny looks. It took a bathroom break and glimpse of my reflection to learn that red wine lead to awkwardly stained lips.

It was nice to talk with John about good things. We hadn't had an "us" night out in a while. We talked about promotions, what we could do now, and what we would do. I told John that I would look at some of the apartments in his building, but I wouldn't make any promises. He agreed that he wouldn't push me and if he did I was allowed a free shot to punch him in the face. I liked that point.

John was driving me home and fully enjoying his new car. Yeah it looked like shit from the outside, but it was more comfortable than the squad car and the radio was better. Things hadn't been easy for John and hell knew that he wasn't always a fan of the rules. For once, going with his gut had put him far ahead in the game.

John pulled the car over. "So did you have fun?"

I smiled and unbuckled myself. "I really did. Thank you for dinner. It was nice being dressed up and going somewhere that wasn't work. Don't get me wrong, I love our pizza and beer nights, but this was a nice treat." I gave his tie a little tug. "I like the tie. So does this promotion mean I get to see you all cleaned up more often?"

"I'd hope you like this tie, I'm pretty sure you bought it for me. I think it was for some benefit or dance. I don't really remember. I'll be a bit more dressed up, but nothing to the point of you pulling out the camera."

I gave a dramatic sigh. "I long to see you in a suit again. Mostly when it is appropriate for me to take your photo. I don't think taking your picture at my father's funeral would have gone over too well. Though I feel he would have approved of my actions."

John gave a little laugh and pulled down his visor. Clipped to the corner was a photo that I couldn't see that well. He pulled it out and leaned closer so I could see it. It was a photo of my father, John, and I from when he graduated from the academy. I loved this photo of us. I had my arms wrapped around John's waist, his arms were around my dad and I, and my father had an arm slung around John's shoulders looking like the proudest man in the world. I actually kept this photo in my bedroom. It was one of the photos of the three of us I loved the best and one of the last ones taken of my father before he died.

John's voice was soft. "I've carried this photo with me since my first day. Everyone has pictures of their family, kids, or some half naked woman. This is my family."

I wrapped my arms around John's neck holding him close. "Thank you John. For everything. Really."

"I'll always be here."

I pulled back from him and smiled. "Goodnight John." I went to kiss his check, but he must have remembered the stain earlier because at the last moment he turned as if to yell at me, which meant I kissed him full on the lips.

We both paused for a moment. We had kissed before and it was fine, but hadn't really been a regular thing in quite some time. Part of me wanted to laugh it off, but there was something in John's eyes that stopped me. People said that brown eyes were boring, but I had to disagree. John's eyes were a deep chocolate, a brown that was rich enough to get lost in. It was one of the reasons that girls fell for him so quickly. When you were talking to him he could just give you a look and it put you at ease. It helped him on the force as well. The eyes that could put you at ease could also darken and become so very cold. Right now they were warm and zeroed in on me. I don't think I could have moved if I had tried.

"Stella."

"Yeah?"

John was barely inches from me, breath covering me. "I'm going to kiss you. This time on purpose."

I gave the slightest nod and closed my eyes as John closed the space between us.

John pressed his lips against mine. I hadn't realized I was cold until I felt how warm he was against me. He urged my lips open and I complied without hesitation. John's hand snaked behind my neck tilted my head a little more to his liking. I was having one of those experiences where my mind was yelling at me to stop, but my brain wasn't listening. John's thumb was running down my throat and sending chills down my spine. I shivered and John slowly broke the kiss.

I blinked slowly opening my eyes. I was finding it a little difficult to breathe under John's gaze. His eyes were dark in an almost predatory way, which made me unsure if I wanted to run or stay. One hand was still at my neck while the other was in a white knuckle grip on the steering wheel. I lifted a hand to his face and ran my thumb across his lips where he was now wearing a good portion of my lipstick. I liked this lipstick for the fact the color lasted on me, but it had a tendency of sticking to anything else that got near it. I smiled a little to myself as I smudged the lipstick a bit more. I like how he looked with my lipstick around his mouth.

John grabbed my hand pulling it away from his mouth. "Stella, I need you to go inside now."

"What?"

His jaw looked a little tight as he placed my hand back on my lap. "I need you to go inside. I can't think straight right now."

Part of me wanted to argue, but the look on his face told me not to. I opened my door and wrapped my arms around my waist. "Goodnight, John."

* * *

**(John's POV)**

I watched Stella walk up the stairs to the lobby, part of me wanting to run after her. She was going to either hate me in the morning or never talk about it again. I slammed my head against my headrest and started driving away.

I don't know what came over me. Stella was just trying to kiss me goodbye and I was going to yell at her for trying to get more lipstick on me when she met my mouth. She looked like she was going to laugh, but I was glad she didn't. I wanted to kiss her properly in that moment. I wasn't sure why then or why at all, but I did. The bit that surprised me was that she not only let me, but she seemed to want to kiss me just as much. She had tasted like smoky wine and her scent made my heart race. Her skin had been soft and when I touched her throat I could feel her pulse quicken.

I was already behind my building without realizing it. It was a good thing my body understood autopilot because I would not have made it home otherwise. I walked up the stairs pulling at my tie. I felt like I was being strangled and I yanked it from around my neck, shoving it into my pocket.

I opened the door to my hallway seeing Ross sitting in front of my door.

Ross looked up and gave me a half smile. "Well good evening Detective, what-" His eyes widened. "Holy shit did someone punch you in the mouth?"

I sighed and fished my keys out of my pocket. "It's lipstick. What are you doing here?"

"Well I called you about four times earlier to congratulate you and ask if I could crash with you tonight because I may have gotten in a little fight with Kim."

I laughed to myself as my door swung open. "Sorry I must still have my ringer off. Come on in. I plan on drinking myself to sleep tonight."

"I'm guessing this has to do with the lipstick." Ross went to my fridge grabbing to beers.

I took a beer from him and fell into my armchair with a groan. "I am a fucking moron. A huge fucking moron."

"A huge fucking moron with a promotion. How the hell did you get a date within a few hours of your promotion?" Ross stretched out on my couch looking at me with a mix of humour and admiration.

"It wasn't exactly a date. I took Stella to an apology dinner."

Ross sat up, choking on his beer.

I put a hand over my eyes. "Thanks for that."

"No, I just…there's lipstick on your face and you were out with Stella. That means either you fucking grew a pair or you kissed another girl and Stella got pissed."

"I kissed her. We were in the car and saying goodbye and she went to kiss my cheek and I tried to stop her so I wouldn't have lipstick all over my face like this afternoon."

Ross nodded, trying to sound serious. "Yeah, I can understand that. I mean you wouldn't want lipstick all over your face."

"Do you want me to tell you what happened or kick you the fuck out?"

Ross laughed into his bottle. "Go on man."

"When I went to tell her not to be a smartass, she ended up kissing me. I don't even know what I was thinking, but I told her I was going to kiss her. I grabbed her and we were making out in the car. I just wanted to grab her and…fuck." I closed my eyes and leaned back in the chair. "I told her to go inside and she looked so confused."

It was hard to tell her to go. When she pulled away from me, I looked at her in a way I hadn't looked at her in years. When we were freshmen in high school I started looking at Stella as more than just a friend for months. It was finally seeing her acting like more than the little tomboy I had grown up with. She was laughing, in her uniform, and it just hit me that she as beautiful. It all ended the moment she got her first boyfriend, which crushed me for all of four days. I hadn't really thought about that since.

Tonight I had almost a flashback when I looked at her. Her eyes were a deep green that could pull anyone toward her, especially with her long, dark lashes. Her face was framed by thick dark brown hair with rich red undertones. It was the kind of hair you wanted to run you fingers through and pull. She had given me a little smile and that nearly sent me over. Aside from the red lipstick that could stop any man in his tracks, Stella had lips that could only be described as juicy. I wanted to sink my teeth into them and listen to her moan. When she finally got out of the car, I watched her walk up the stairs and noticed she glanced back once before hurrying on. I realized the real problem when she walked up the steps. I always thought her pencil skirts were cute until I watched her walk from behind. That skirt hugged her in a delicious way. There was a little slit in the back that made me want to rip the skirt up the back. I could imagine the surprise on her face and it made my pulse quicken. That was the moment I pulled the car away.

Ross cleared his throat. "You're in some deep shit aren't you? I know that look on your face. You don't even need to say anything. You got smacked in the face with realizing that she's more than your friend. That she's a woman and a fucking attractive one at that."

I glared at Ross. "I know."

He laughed. "So how many beers will it take until you stop thinking about ripping off her clothes?"

I groaned. "A lot."

* * *

**(Stella's POV)**

I crawled into bed and pressed a pillow against my face. I had been fine until I was taking off my lipstick. I pressed a cloth against my lips and they were still tingling.

What had made John do that? What the hell had made me kiss him back?

That had happened only once before. It was back in high school and I had just broken up with one of my boyfriends because I found out he had been cheating on me. I went to John angry and crying. I was just upset that I hadn't seen it and he was trying to calm me down. I had given him a kiss and it turned deeper in moments. I tried taking it further, but John pushed me off looking angry. We didn't really talk about it, we just went back to acting normal. It had bothered me for some time, but like most things, I learned to let it go.

This time it would bother me. We weren't just a pair of absent minded teenagers. We were adults now and this wasn't just something to brush off. I enjoyed the kiss, maybe a little more than I should have in the moment. The way he grabbed me, his scent, and the aggression in his kiss made me wish it had lasted longer. We couldn't just ignore this and he knew it. That was why he made me get out of the car. The look he gave me was the way I always thought the wolf looked at Red Riding Hood. He looked like he wanted to eat me up and I would have stayed.

I plugged my phone in and stared at it. I opened my text messages before I chickened out and hit John's name.

_So. Are we going to talk about this?_

I stared at my phone afraid to fall asleep and shivered under my blankets. A few minutes later my phone buzz and I nearly fell backwards to reach it.

_Go to bed Stella._

_John, please. I'm just confused._

_It doesn't matter. I told you I couldn't think straight. Just go to sleep. I don't want to talk about it._

_Please._

_Don't beg. I said no._

_Fine. Go fuck yourself Blake. _I pressed send, my jaw locking in place. Before I could read another angry message to get a phone call, I shut my phone off.

* * *

**A/N: Putting this up a little early tonight. One of the nice things about having chapters in queue is that you don't scramble to make a deadline. If only I had done this for my other stories.**


	5. There's Fire

I woke up in a bad mood. That could have been for any number of reasons. Firstly, my alarm clock told me that it was seven in the morning. On my day off I couldn't even sleep late. I had turned all my alarms off and my apartment was quiet. My body just hated me. The fact that I had dreamt about John hadn't helped my mood either. The dream had involved his car, handcuffs, and a larger backseat than any real car would have. To say I woke up in a bad mood, one would have to focus on the part where I woke up.

I had moved past my normal morning coffee for a water bottle and the roof. I actually hit my freestanding bag so hard I couldn't feel my hand for a full minute. Though I deserved it since I hit it without any gloves or tape. While I was waiting for the feeling to come back in my hand I finally turned my phone back on. A series of ringing, beeps, and vibrations followed, much to my amusement. I never turned my phone off. I put it on vibrate at night, but I never shut my phone off.

I had dozens of text messages from Ross, John, and Yvette. Along with the messages were a series of voicemails. I decided to start with Yvette's and work my way down.

"_Stella? I'm sorry to call you this early, especially on your day off, but there's a problem. Well two problems since now your phone is off. I can't get in the building. No one is here. Is something going on that I didn't get a message about?"_

I chuckled to myself and hit the next message.

"_Stella? Sorry, it's me again. Danielle just got here. I hope you enjoy your day off. I'm really sorry. At least you have your phone off so I didn't wake you!"_

Oh Yvette. We were going to need to start drugging her coffee or switching her to decaf. I looked at the timestamp and noticed there had been a five minute difference between those two calls.

I looked back at my voicemail log and figured I would start from earlier in the night, with Ross.

"_Stella? It's Ross. From the swearing I can hear from John in the other room you're either ignoring his messages or your phone is off. I'm thinking your phone is off, or at least hoping that since I will be pretty offended if you're ignoring my calls. Listen Stella, I'm going to be serious with you. He came home and we started drinking. He didn't call me over, I just needed a place to crash. So before you get mad at any text message he sends you, remember he's angry with himself. I didn't get full details, though I keep trying for them. I can tell you this. This guy has been suppressing his feeling for you and acting on them is fucking with his head. Remember that whole point when he fills up your inbox, okay?"_

Drinking. Oh boy. Aside from Ross trying to drunken guilt trip me, John had spent the night drunk texting and calling me. The next few messages would be delightful.

"_Really? 'Go fuck yourself, Blake?' That's what I get? Why, because I kick you out of the car you get to act like a bitch? Fuck you Stella. Fuck. You."_

I clicked quickly to the next voicemail so I wouldn't have to think about him trying to turn the tables on me.

"_Stella, it's me. I shouldn't have said that. It's just…fuck. Please, just turn your phone back on. I don't know what to tell you, I just want to say I'm sorry for the text message. We can work from there."_

Oh, that was helpful. I put my headphones in to listen to the next two messages and decided taking another shot at the bag was a good idea. I wrapped my hands and put my gloves back on.

"_Stella. Do you want to know why I asked you to get out of the car?"_

I paused. John's voice was different in this message. I knew he was drunk, but his voice was low and I could tell he was controlling it as best he could, which was surprisingly well.

"I couldn't have you that close to me. Kissing you was opening up feelings I _haven't had in a long time. If you were still next to me, I wouldn't have held back. I wanted you in that moment, Stella. I wanted to bite those red lips of yours until you were moaning. I would have ripped that skirt of yours right up the back without a second thought."_

I found it hard to swallow hearing him talk like this. I could imagine him locked in his room pacing and talking to my voicemail. His fingers raking the walls as he talked about me.

"_You would be so surprised, Stella. So surprised to feel my hands slid up your legs, my hand teasing you over your panties. You'd watch as I unbuttoned your blouse and tossed it in my backseat. I'd pull you to sit on my lap. You would be so unsure of what you should do. One of my favourite parts would be unhooking your bra and watching as you tried to cover yourself."_

There was a pause and I held my breath waiting for John's voice to continue.

"_I would have tasted every inch of your body, Stella. Every inch of you while you were shaking under my touch. _That_ is what I would have done to you if you didn't get out of the car."_

I felt dizzy as the message ended. Drunk call or not, John's voice painted a vivid picture in my head. I sat down on the rooftop, letting the cold stone calm me down. The skies were starting to look a little grey, but I think the snow would hold off for the big football game. I hit the last voicemail hoping it would be less…imaginative.

"_Stella. It's me. Last time."_

John's voice sounded exhausted and like he had downed a few more beers since that other voicemail.

"_I'm going to go to bed now. I really hope you forgive me tomorrow for the text messages, voicemails, and the fact I am an asshole. Stella, you said I would always be a part of your life. I really hope I didn't fuck that up. Goodnight, Stella."_

I put my hands over my face groaning. I really needed a voicemail full of John's personalities like I needed a bullet to the head. I looked at my watch and realized this was possibly one of the worst days off I had in a while. I'd beat the shit out of my bag for another hour, grab a shower, and head to the hospital. I wanted an update from Gordon and I figured if he hadn't figured out where the guns were, I could at least move them to a place more easily accessible.

* * *

The weather was starting to get crisp and I enjoyed my walk to the hospital. I also probably enjoyed it more because I had gone through a box of my dad's things. Something John had said during dinner last night made me think that a little extra protection today would not be a bad idea. I had wanted to take my father's sawed off, but I thought it would be a little bit over overkill and since I didn't have a permit to carry concealed, that would be tempting fate. So I went with the next best thing; a shoulder holster and the Glock. I had even shrugged into my father's old leather jacket to give myself some extra space.

I was starting to feel like I nothing could stop me when I walked through the hospital doors. I was armed with food and coffee after getting a phone call from Gordon. Apparently he was going to have another test later this afternoon and he may be cleared to go home after. He has asked me to come to possibly hurry things along. I was going to make sure he didn't threaten any of the nurses in the event that he didn't get cleared. I think that they were just saying it to him so he would calm down. Those poor, poor, confused people.

I gave a wave to Gretel and placed a cut of coffee on the top of the welcome desk. "Good afternoon. Maybe?"

Gretel laughed. "Oh, as good as it's going to get. Did he call you out of excitement?"

I felt my eyes widen. "Wait, you seriously are letting him out today? I thought someone was just trying to calm him down."

Gretel took a sip of her coffee and rolled her eyes. "That's how it started, but really he's doing much better and he's just getting restless. Normally we only discharge in the morning, but he only has one last exam this afternoon. If all goes well he can leave. This wasn't how you planned on your day off I assume."

I shrugged, cupping my hands around my coffee cup and put the bag down for a moment. "I had tickets to go to the football game, but handed them off to a friend in my building. I've just been working out and trying to calm down from what has already been a shitty week."

"Well go ahead and see Gordon. If he can't cheer you up at least you'll get a good laugh. Your friend, the cute one, is in there too."

"Blake? Great. That's what I need right now."

"Trouble in paradise?"

"If I knew what paradise was, it would probably be on fire." I gave Gretel a little salute and made my way down the hallway to Gordon's room.

I clutched the coffee tray in one hand and held the bag with subs in the other as I stood in Gordon's doorway. John was standing near his bed holding the map I had made up in his hands.

Gordon looked over to see me and waved me in. "Please tell me that is from Figaro's."

I walked past John without making eye contact and gave Gordon a smile. "It is. Kenny sends his regards and hopes to see you back there soon. Also, coffee. So, you may really be discharged later today if your test goes well and you keep fussing. In the meantime, what can I do?"

"You can explain to Heather here that I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself."

The nurse rolled her eyes in a good natured way. We joked about Gordon complaining, but he knew better than to give shit to his caretakers. "Keep talking like that and I'm just going to stop supplying you with painkillers."

Gordon took one of her hands and gave her a smile. "Heather, darling. You shouldn't kid like that."

I leaned against the wall feeling John staring at me. I wrapped my hands around my coffee cup, fighting the urge to look at him and stick my tongue out.

Foley walked into the room looking agitated. "Okay Commissioner, you were right." He paused realizing who was in the room. He turned to Heather with a slightly apologetic look. "Can we have a moment?"

Heather nodded and I went to follow her, but Gordon stopped me.

"Oh no, whenever someone tells me I'm right I feel that I should have more witnesses. Aside from that, you're a part of this now."

I nodded and stood my ground noticing Foley didn't look completely thrilled, but even he could see there was no time to argue.

"What happened?"

Foley looked down for a moment, and I realized he hated to admit he had been wrong in ignoring Gordon. " Your masked man kidnapped the Wayne Enterprises board. He let most of them go, but took three down into the sewers."

Gordon's face contracted. All the humor that had been there seconds ago vanished and was replaced with anger. "No more patrols, no more hide and seek. Send every available cop down there to smoke him out."

Foley looked lost. "The mayor won't want panic. If we send out the entire force into the sewers, people are going to notice."

"So, say it's a training exercise."

We all turned to see John speak up. He had a good point. It was the day of the football game and a large portion of the city would be inside Gotham Stadium, or glued to their televisions. It would be the perfect day for the department to have scheduled a training exercise.

Foley nodded and looked back to Gordon. You could see from his face that he realized he never should have ignored Gordon. "I'm sorry for not taking you seriously."

With that he walked out and John went to follow.

"Oh no. Not you." Gordon called John back. "You're telling me the Batman's gone. So you're going to chase the Daggett leads any way you can. You have the map."

John nodded and gave me a half smile before he walked out.

"What did the boy do, Stella?"

I closed my eyes and sank into the chair by his bed. "We got in a fight. Also, considering how normal he was just acting, he has no recollection of the drunken voicemails he left me."

Gordon gave a little smile. "I remember those days. Take it easy on the boy."

"Aren't you suppose to be nicer to me than him?"

"He didn't hide my guns on me."

I rolled my eyes. "I left them here. I just couldn't leave them in the open obviously. The nurses would have confiscated them and I am positive I wouldn't be allowed to visit anymore. That means no more coffee or Figaro's."

Gordon rolled his eyes. "Listen. Change of nurses is coming right now. Get the guns out please." He paused and looked at me. "Stella. Are you carrying?"

"What makes you think that?"

"You're wearing your father's jacket and I don't think I've seem you wear something that wasn't fitted properly in quite some time. That leads me to think you are also wearing his shoulder holster."

I sighed. "It's really fucking uncomfortable. I had to adjust it five times to get it to lay in a position that didn't completely irritate me."

Gordon pinched his nose. "Stella."

I rolled my eyes and unzipped the jacket, putting it on the chair. I kept an eye on the door as I unhooked the holster, hiding it inside the jacket. I grabbed an empty chair and pushed it toward the other side of the room, counting ceiling tiles. I hopped on the chair and popped the tile reaching around for the bag.

"Stella. Out of all the places you could have hidden it, you picked the ceiling?"

"People always forget the most obvious places to hide things these days." I finally felt the strap of the bag and pulled it toward me. I put it over my shoulder and put the tile back in place. "Ta da."

Gordon took the bag from me as I sat back down. "Good you packed well. Now, why are you carrying?"

I saw a nurse come in and grabbed the duffle from Gordon. "Hello Heather. Last exam?"

She nodded. "Last exam. You can wait here until we bring him back. He'll still need a doctor's clearance so it could be a while."

I adjusted myself in my chair. "No worries. I can wait. I've got the day off and I'd rather wait around than come back if that's okay."

"Not a problem. Ready to go Commissioner?"

Gordon sighed and took Heather's hand to get out of bed. "As ready as I'll ever be."

* * *

Gordon was back in bed and both of us were waiting on word from John or Foley on any progress. My shoulder holster was back in place with Gordon's blessing. With the news from earlier it was good to have someone at least looking as if they were standing guard. So far no one had questioned it. Than again, I looked like a nice person. Nice people with guns weren't questions. Especially when they were visiting the police commissioner.

Gordon's phone started ringing and we both jumped. He pressed speakerphone and answered. "Gordon."

"Commissioner, it's Blake. I'm just calling to check in. I've been to half Daggett's cement plants, logged locations they've poured for underground construction."

"Anything strange about the pouring?"

"Honestly, Commissioner, I don't know anything about civil engineering."

I rolled my eyes. "John? It's Stella. Do you see any patterns yet? Anything that seems out of the ordinary?"

"Nothing that's jumping out. I'm pulling up to the main plant now. I'll call you after."

"Keep looking. You're good with patterns."

There was a pause. "Sometimes."

The phone disconnected and I looked up at Gordon with a sigh. "This isn't good. You'd think he would have found something by now."

Gordon looked at his watch. "Foley should be bringing the men into the tunnel any minute now.

I caught a glimpse of his watch and grabbed the remote. I may not be able to be at the football game and a masked assassin may be hiding in the sewers of my city, but I was not about to miss the football game.

Gordon gave a little laugh. "Someone has her priorities straight."

"Hey, until we get word, there's nothing else for us to do but wait."

Gordon looked down at his phone and swore. "Damn. The battery died. Would you mind?"

"Not at all." I took the charger he handed me and tried to find an outlet close to the bed, but gave up and plugged it in on the other side of the room.

"Stella, the national anthem is about to start. This kid doesn't look much bigger than the football."

I laughed and moved to the other side of the room. Sure enough there was a little boy decked out in black and gold singing the national anthem. "Wow. Pipsqueak has one hell of a voice."

"That he does."

"So, how many things have you hidden in ceiling tiles?"

"Not as much as you would think. I hid a bully's backpack up there once. I also hid up there once in grad school just to see how far I could go. The high school didn't have the tiles and I never spent enough time in the hospital to need to hide anything. I just like knowing I can."

"You crawled around on the ceiling?"

"I was curious."

"Could you still do it?"

"Possibly. It just depends on the plans of the building. It depends how much space they left. I could climb up into these without a problem. There's a good portion of room up there. I could probably put the panel mostly back in place and scare the crap out of anyone that came through the door."

"Sometimes I worry that you spend too much time thinking about things."

"What do you think I did the night I fell asleep here."

"Something more produ-shit."

I whipped my head around to look at the television. There were explosions in the stadium and I watched as a majority of the field collapsed. A moment later Gordon's heart monitor started beeping like crazy and stopped as the power went completely out.

Gordon looked at me. "Gun. Look out the door."

I tossed his bag onto the bed and moved toward the door. I grabbed my Glock holding it tightly before opening it just a crack. "No one is at the front station. Power is out as far as I can see. Something is very wrong. Everything else around seems too quiet."

Gordon's voice sounded a bit strained, but nothing too worrisome. I could hear him ripping off the monitors and other tubes attached to him. "Most of the rooms in this wing were empty or were discharged today. They wanted to give me the end room to give me extra privacy. Stella, you said you could scare someone from the ceiling. Do you think you could manage a clear shot?"

I turned to face him. "What?"

"Do you think you could manage it?"

"I think I could get a clear shot, but I would end up showing my position."

"Not if you used the space behind the door. By the time someone caught sight of you, they'd already be down." He pushed the chair toward me. "Do it Stella. They're coming."

I couldn't even argue. I took a spare clip he offered me and stepped onto the chair, popping the tile out. I holstered the gun again and placed my hands carefully on the inside before pulling myself up. It wasn't as easy as I remembered, but the extra headroom helped. I swung my legs around and moved the tile slightly so that it was half in place. It wouldn't stop someone when they were looking, but it helped a bit. Well, in my head it would help.

Gordon looked up and gave me a nod before kicking the chair to the other side of the room. He moved back a few steps so that he would gain a few seconds on anyone who walked into the room.

I should have felt something, but I didn't. I wasn't scared or worried. I wasn't anxious or shaking In fact, I was just in a zone. I was ready and waiting. My eyes were zeroed in on the door just waiting.

There was screaming and voices ordering people to go to the lobby. Gordon was standing perfectly still just waiting. I focused back on the door when I heard running coming toward us.

Gordon's voice was barely a whisper. "Take a breath and pull the trigger as you breathe out."

"I remember."

The footsteps stopped just outside of the door before it was kicked open. Two figures moved forward and I zeroed in on the bald mad.

Breathe in.

Focus.

Breathe out and shoot.

Both men fell as my ears started ringing. Shooting in a confined space wasn't one of my best ideas. I shook my head looked back toward the door before looking down toward Gordon. He was saying something, but it sounded like he was underwater.

I focused on his lips. _Are you okay? Stella. Are you okay?_

I nodded and pointed to my ears, trying to hear my voice. _Can't hear yet. Small space. I'm fine. Are you hurt?_

He held his arms out so I could see him and smiled. _Fine. Try popping your ears. Sometimes it wor- _He paused and held up a finger. _Footsteps. One set. Heading this way. Stay in position, but wait to shoot. They wouldn't send two just to send another by himself._

I nodded and looked back toward the door waiting. I saw a shadow pause at the door and come in quickly. I blinked as my hearing returned in what felt like a vacuum in my ears.

Gordon placed his gun against the intruder's neck. "Clear the corners, rookie."

I breathed as I recognized John's head as he turned to Gordon in surprise. "Thank fucking god."

John's head whipped up to see me. "Stella?"

I gave him a half smile. "Hey."

Gordon moved toward his dresser to get the clothing I had brought him. "Oh for god sakes. Help her down."

"I can do it by myself thanks." I holstered my gun and swung my legs so they were hanging over the edge. I held the corners and got ready to jump, but a pair of arms grabbed my waist to steady me. I let go and John slowly slid me to the floor.

As soon as I was steadied, John grabbed me in the tightest hug he could manage. His face was pressed against my hair and I could feel his heart pounding. "Stella, I am so sorry. Christ."

Unable to move my arms from against his chest, I just nodded. "John. It's okay just ease up. We need to get out of here."

He let go of me and his eyes zeroed in on the shoulder holster. "Stella…"

"Blake, you and Stella can have a screaming match once we get out of here. Hell knows you two need one. But let's get out of here first. Fill us in on what you know."

* * *

**(John's POV)**

I was driving through the streets as the dark began to fall. It was crazy to see that we were trapped in our own city. My eyes flicked to the rearview mirror to check on Stella. She hadn't said much since we got into the car. All she said was to turn on the radio and she crawled into the trunk keeping a look behind us.

Stella had the right idea. The radio was pulling in emergency broadcasts. Not any regular ones, but a national one aimed at Gotham. The President was addressing Gotham's citizens. Gordon was staring at the radio as I continued driving through the city to see what else we could find.

People were clustered at windows and looking at the streets below. Others were driving quickly to buildings they recognized to find some shelter. Stores were locked up tight, though it was a bit hard to tell if it was because of the game or the explosions. We would just have to wait and see what would happen.

"The people of our greatest city are resilient. They have proven this before, they will prove this again. We do not negotiate with terrorists, but we do recognize realities. As the situation develops, one thing must be understood above all others. People of Gotham, we have not abandoned you."

I looked at the radio in confusion. "What's that suppose to mean?"

"It means we're on our own." Stella's voice was low, but firm.

Gordon shook his head beside me. "I have to get in front of a camera."

"Sir, they'll kill you the second they see your face." I took a right, deciding we needed to get to my apartment as soon as possible. Once there we could take some time to regroup.

"The Mayor's dead. I'm the symbol of law and order. Bane says he's giving Gotham back to the people…They need to know that I could lead."

Stella spoke up again. "Bane will never let that happen."

"Then he'll show his true colors."

I parked the car and gripped Gordon's shoulder. "And you'll be dead."

* * *

**(Stella's POV)**

John had brought us to his apartment. I was too tired to argue. He had filled us in on Bane's speech at the football game and during the drive I told him to turn on the radio. Anyone crazy enough to blow up exits to and from one of the greatest cities in the country was probably broadcasting his words, mantra, manifesto, or whatever over the radio waves. Well something had been broadcasting. Unfortunately, it was just the President telling us that Gotham was on its own.

Gordon had taken place on the couch and slumped forward trying to figure out his next move. Almost all of Gotham's police was currently trapped in the tunnels. The only ones that escaped were Gordon, John, Foley, and three men that had been with Foley at the entrance.

John was making coffee and I stood in the kitchen with him. He kept looking up at me unsure what to do or say. "Stella. I'm sorry about kicking you out of the car last night."

I blinked. I had been right, he really didn't remember. "Wait. That's what you were apologizing for?"

John looked at me confused. "Well yeah. I figured that's why you were mad. Well that and the text message conversation. Why? Did I keep texting you?"

I groaned and took my phone out of my pocket. "You called me. I have four voicemails."

John stared at the phone like it was a snake. "Oh."

"Listen. I'm going to grab a quick nap on your bed while we regroup. I'll probably head back when I wake up or when you start yelling. Whichever comes first." I handed my phone to him and headed toward his room shutting the door behind me.

I threw myself onto his bed with a groan. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I kicked my sneakers off and crawled under the covers. Hopefully I could get a half hour nap. I know he would need to listen to the third voicemail at least twice and would think very carefully before he came to talk to me. I closed my eyes and sank into the pillow. It didn't matter. As long as I could catch a little bit of sleep.

* * *

**(John's POV)**

Gordon had fallen asleep on my couch and seemed comfortable enough. Before we left the hospital, one of the nurses had pressed a bottle of painkillers into his hands. She knew that it would be some time until everything was up and running so she wanted to do her job while she still could.

Stella had fallen asleep in my room and hadn't stirred for quite some time. I had gone to check on her after I listened to the voicemails, but quickly shut the door again once I saw she had finally drifted to sleep.

The voicemails. I winced just thinking about them. I didn't remember them. I knew I called her to yell about turning off her phone, but that was about it. From what I could tell there had been quite a lapse in time from one phone call to the next. Well at least from the second call to the third. How she had stopped herself from hitting me or just walking out when she saw me in the hospital today was beyond me. Stella was just a better person sometimes.

I had listened to the third message more than the others for obvious reasons. I just couldn't believe it was my voice. Well, part of me could. The other part was so surprised I would leave a message like that for Stella. Those words are something you tell a woman to her face. Some things are too intimate not to say when standing next to the other person, just to watch as every word settles in their mind. I was embarrassed to admit it, but I wish I had seen the look on Stella's face while she listened to the message.

I had kept the television on, but all I could see was a video on loop saying that Bane would speak to the people of Gotham in the morning. Nothing good would come of this. Especially when Bruce could be dead. Selena Kyle had no reason to lie to me about that. In fact, she had looked sad when she admitted she didn't know his fate. She was scared and sad. One thing I knew was that when a woman that dangerous was scared, nothing good was coming.

I plugged her phone in the kitchen and decided to go back to the bedroom. The sun had set and I blinked to make out the shapes in my bedroom. Moving toward my bed I sit beside her, figuring it would be safer than to sit at her feet.

"Stella?"

Stella turned her head against the pillow with a groan. "John? What time is it?"

"It's late. You're going to have to stay here tonight, okay?"

She rubbed her eyes and sat up. "What's going on John? Holy shit, it's dark outside."

I couldn't help but smile. "It is. I told you it was late. Looks like you were tired."

She ran her fingers through her hair carefully looking at me. "I can go for a while, you probably need more sleep than I do."

I caught her arm as she went to move. "No you stay there. I want to talk to you. I listened to all the voicemails."

"You just listened to them now?"

I shook my head. "No. No. I listened to them quite a while ago. A few times. I just needed some time to build up the courage to face you."

Stella wrapped her arms around her knees. "Okay. Can I ask you something?"

"I don't think I really have a right to say no."

"You don't, but I figured I would ask. How long have you felt like that?"

I blinked. That wasn't what I thought she would ask. "I don't know."

"Okay, give me an estimate."

"No. I mean it, Stella. I really don't know. I don't know where that came from. The last time I felt that way, I was sixteen. I had a crush on you one day and it just went away when you started dating. I honestly hadn't thought about it since then. I don't know where it came from. Maybe I was caught up in the moment."

"The moment? That call was at least two hours and quite a few beers later." She sighed. "I don't mean for it to sound like an accusation, but come on, John." Stella reached a hand out and took my hand. "You need to tell me what's going on."

I looked at her hand in mine and shook my head. "I don't regret the kiss. I regret leaving you that voicemail because, well, holy shit. Some things shouldn't be left on a voicemail." I looked at her to see she wasn't making eye contact and couldn't help but smile. "You liked the voicemail. Holy shit, Stella. You really liked the voicemail."

She narrowed her eyes and tried to pull out of my grip. "I didn't say that. It was surprising. That's all."

I moved closer to her, unable to stop from laughing. "Holy shit. It turned you on. I turned you on."

She punched me in the arm. "Shut up, John. Let us not forget that you've been holding back this really intense fantasy about me."

I moved my arm to rest on the other side of her, successfully trapping her in place. "It wasn't conscious. I didn't think about you like that, Stella."

"Didn't?"

"What?"

She looked at me carefully. "You said didn't, not don't. Past tense."

I sighed and stretched out on the bed. I was staring at the ceiling to avoid her questioning gaze. "I enjoyed the kiss. I loved the way you looked at me the other night."

Stella shifted so she was gazing down on me. "I enjoyed it too. It's just…it's a lot to process. We've had set roles for a really long time."

"So. We could try? Maybe?"

She laughed and lay down next to me. He hand reached out and tapped my nose. "The Batman has been kidnapped or killed, a masked assassin is in control of the city, and you are concerned about fooling around?"

I groaned and pulled her closer to me. "No. Well, partially yes, but that isn't the point. I'm asking if we can try being more than us. More than our "set roles" as you said. That kiss and the voicemail made me think that maybe, just maybe it would be okay."

Her lips curved into a smile. "The voicemail made you think it was okay?"

"The fact that you kept it and didn't delete it right away makes me think it's okay."

She smiled and lightly slapped my cheek. "Under the covers."

I laughed and slid under the sheets. I was in my undershirt and jeans, not really willing to chance keeping my tie on. I had disregarded the tie and button down back in the kitchen, just in the event Stella wasn't in a forgiving mood.

I tucked her hair behind her ear so I could see her face more clearly. She was there. The little kid who was the first to talk to me in school, the tomboy who gave me a black eye when I cut part of her pigtail, and the teenager who once caught my eye. In all her forms, she was laying next to me.

Stella brushed her hand over my face, closing my eyes. "Sleep, John. We have quite a lot of work to do before the dust settles."

She placed a quick kiss against my lips and turned before I could stop her. I wrapped an arm around her waist, settling in. I looked out the window over Stella's shoulder and mentally sighed. She thought she was being figurative about the dust. The smoke was still settling after the explosions and it was like a thick fog outside. I couldn't help but think about that old saying, one that was reinstated in the academy. Where there's smoke, there's fire.

* * *

**A/N: Uploading this a few hours early.**

**Yeah okay. My hits have skyrocketed, I've gained more followers and favourites on this story. I'm uploading this chapter and from here I don't know if I'm going to do bi weekday updates anymore... Seriously. Four reviews? You guys are hurting my feelings. A lot.**


	6. Situational Stockpiling

I groaned moving my head. My neck felt stiff as all hell and it took a second to figure out why. There was an arm wrapped around me with the hand splayed across my bare stomach. I smiled noticing how my shirt had hiked, or been hiked, up. I slipped under John's arm and slowly slid out of bed, watching him frown a bit in his sleep. His body shifted and his head moved back to rest fully on his pillow, no longer imprinted in my neck. I shook my head and slowly moved toward John's bathroom to fix myself up before I left. I shut the door and put on the light moving quickly. If I made too much noise John would wake up and try pulling me back to bed. I had work to do.

I hung my jacket on the back of the door reaching in the pocket for my hair elastic. I never slept with them in because they felt too tight. I kept it in my mouth as I raked my fingers through my hair taking inventory of his bathroom. I tied my hair up and opened the cabinet under his sink. Bingo. Unopened toothbrushes, perfection. I threw my hair up in a bun and brushed my teeth searching for something to write with. I smiled with the toothbrush still in my mouth and searched the inside pockets of my jacket. I rinsed my mouth and leaned over the sink to write a message on his mirror.

_RJB_

_Checking out my place. Getting supplies. I will be perfectly fine. I'll steal one of the talkies we use for kayaking. Get me on that just in case the cell towers go down or you're all stealthy. You owe me a new red too._

I smiled at the last part and carefully put my lipstick on. I gave a kiss to the mirror under my words as my signature. If the message didn't drive John up the wall, seeing his initials and my lip print would.

I slipped into my sneakers, threw on my coat, and snuck out of John's apartment before he and Gordon could wake up.

* * *

**(John's POV)**

"I'm going to murder her." I stood in front of my bathroom mirror, jaw clenched. I counted to ten and moved back into my bedroom, looking for clothes. I paused looking on top of my dresser. True to her word, Stella had taken one of the walkie talkies. I hit the ringer on the side of it while I threw clean clothes onto my bed.

"What?"

I closed my eyes and picked up the walkie. "What the fuck do you think you are doing, Stella?"

"Someone doesn't like waking up alone." Her laugh came over the talkie in a weird echo. "I'm thinking how glad I am that you got waterproof talkies so I can laugh at that angry tone and still take my shower."

I blinked at the talkie. I could hear the water and the shower would explain the echo. "Fuck."

She was laughing again. "Should I have asked you to join me?"

"Stella…" She was playing with fire. I sat on the edge of my bed rubbing my forehead slowly. "Why couldn't you have just taken a shower here?"

"My clothes are here. Other essentials are here. We don't know what's happening. Until we do, I want to make sure I can gather any things we need."

One thing that I liked about the walkie talkies is that it cut off the sound sounds on her end when she was done speaking. Hearing the water was painting a picture in my head that I didn't need at this exact moment. "Stella, just…be safe."

"I always do. Oh, did you like my message?"

I rubbed the back on my neck smiling down at the walkie. "Yeah. We can talk about that when you get back."

I could almost hear the smile in her voice. "Oh. That we can. Stella out."

I looked at the walkie with a sigh and moved to put it back in the charger. I made sure to keep the volume all the way up just in case something changed. I thought for a second about just getting changed and going after her, but remembered I still had Gordon in the living room. Stella had the right idea. A shower should clear my head.

I checked my watch and headed to the bathroom. I had time. There was suppose to be some talk today from Bane and I had quite a lot of time to kill. I looked at the mirror again and shook my head. I've always believed Stella would be the reason I went insane, but maybe it would be worth it.

* * *

**(Stella's POV)**

I checked outside my windows, but the streets were quiet. Too quiet.

My cell phone had gone off quite a few times this morning. Everyone seemed to be checking up on each other and checking to make sure that the cell towers were still working. So far, they still were. One of my friends and inside connections, Linda Howard, had given me the scoop. One of Bane's lackies had been calling all the local radio and news stations. She did mention that the newspapers were not called which was starting to stir up some concern. I would be concerned too.

I had walked through the quiet streets to see many faces watching me from the windows above me. When I made it into my hallway, many of my neighbors had stopped me. Most were told not to come to work while others were too scared to leave. Everyone wanted to know what it was like outside since no one had ventured out since the explosions. Apparently seeing someone walking around the next day gave them a bit of hope. I didn't have the heart to tell them otherwise.

Now I was getting ready to do some gathering. I was dressed for a day of packing and possibly panicking. That was the main reason why my sawed off was currently strapped in its holster to my leg. While it was scary at first to feel the weight against my leg, I couldn't help but feel like I was in an old western film. I felt quite badass, especially after getting reacquainted with the holster. I was a good shot, actually I was quite a good shot. My father took me to the range with him often as soon as I was old enough. He said it was because he would rather be know how to use a gun just incase than never know. Honestly, I think he just thought it was the best way for me to calm down. Because a sad eighteen year old at the range was better than a crying one in a small apartment.

I shrugged into my pea coat that hid the gun and holster. Before heading out the door I grabbed one of my smaller duffle bags and lined the inside with a thin blanket. Just in case. I stuffed my keys, phone, and walkie in my pocket as I walked back down the hall. I would be back to my apartment. No matter what else happened, I would be back.

I walked next door to The Second Amendment, the gun shop attached to the pizza parlor. All of the blinds were shut and the iron gate was down. I had a feeling, however, that Big Steve, the owner, was inside. Sure enough a face looked out from behind the blinds and there was some jingling from inside. A few moments later the door opened and Big Steve ushered me in. Big Steve was a former cop that had been injured on the job. He had gotten shot with a shotgun and needed to have part of his leg amputated. Most guys would spiral into a depression and hold a grudge, but not Big Steve. When the department had to let him go, he gracefully bowed out and decided to open a gun shop. He also co-owned one of the gun ranges in the city that also seemed to be a favorite spot for the boys in blue and their families. Big Steve stood at 6'4" and looked a bit scary, but the guy was incredibly sweet. He helped run toys for tots around Christmas and was probably the best Santa Claus in the area.

Big Steve locked the door behind me and locked the gate back in place. "Ammunition?"

I nodded. "I just want to prepare. Blake and Gordon are currently the only two in the department that I know aren't trapped in the tunnels. They're got some and I need to add to what I have. Everyone okay on your end?"

Steve nodded and motioned me to follow him to the backroom. "I was planning on coming back here last night, but Delilah and the kids didn't want me to go. I didn't feel right leaving them in the middle of the night. Let's get you set and we can both get the hell out of here." He turned around giving me a stern look. "And Stella? There's no charge for this. I don't know what the hell is going on, but I want you and Blake armed. I want the Commissioner taken care of. Hell knows, we need him to be safe. Foley went into hiding."

I paused in the doorway. "What now?"

Steve shook his head and took my duffel. "He lives down the street from us. Saw him go inside the house and it's been quiet since." He pointed toward the small television on the other side of the room. "Turn it on. I'm sure you already heard there's going to be some sort of a speech."

I nodded and turned the television on and moved toward Steve looking through the ammunition. There was a reported speaking about waiting for the "press conference" that should be starting in about five minutes.

"So what do you have Stella?"

"Well Black and Gordon both have their Glocks and I have Dad's old one. Gordon also has a Beretta 92SF."

Big Steve chuckled. "It's always nice when people give me the right model."

"Well I packed it up with ammunition a while ago, so I try to remember important details like that. Oh, and Blake has a shotgun, a Remington. One of the police issue. I never remember which model."

"It'll be a 870, but it doesn't matter. I've got the shells for it. I'm also giving you another present. You need more than that little boomstick of yours."

I had taken off my coat noticing the wall of holsters. I was going to need another one just in case. "Hey, I love the sawed off. It makes a fucking scary sound and it's easy to carry. But, what did you have in mind?"

Big Steve held a sniper rifle in his hand. "You're a damn good shot. I remember how you used to look at the rifles at the range. I think this would be a good thing for you to have. It's Remington 700PSS with Leopold Mark 4 scope and Harris bipod."

I took the rifle from his hands in awe. I had no idea how good the scope was, but I had seen this model before. It was gorgeous. "Would it be wrong to say I was in love with it? I want to name it."

Big Steve laughed. "You are a special girl Stella. Check the box to your right. There's a good shoulder rig for your father's Glock. It'll hold three clips aside from what you have in the gun." He took the rifle back from me carefully attaching a rifle sling. I would be able to carry it and use it while it was still attached. "Stella. Turn the television up. They're starting. I want to be long gone by the time this press conference is over."

I nodded and turned the volume up while helping Big Steve pack up as much as we could carry. I shrugged into the shoulder holster and slung the rifle sling across my chest. Big Steve and I were loading up as many duffle bags as we could.

I noticed Big Steve had stopped, eye fixed on the television. "What? Oh shit." The reporters and camera all stood in front of Blackgate Prison. Bane was standing by the gates addressing the crowd, surrounded by his armed guard.

"Behind you stands a symbol of oppression. Blackgate Prison, where a thousand men have languished for years. Under the name of the Dent Act. Under the name of this man, Harvey Dent." Bane Held up a photo of Harvey Dent for all the cameras to see. "He was held up to you and over you, as a shining example of justice and good."

The man shook his head and ignited a lighter in his other hand. The photograph started burning and melting, bubbles erupting over Dent's face. "But they have supplied you with a false idol. A straw man. To placate. To stop you from tearing down this corrupt city and rebuilding it the way it should have been generations ago."

Big Steve grabbed me shoulder. "Stella. I do not like where this is going. Hurry. Now."

I threw my coat on, but took no time to button up. It was past that time anyway. I took the duffle bag I had brought and slung it across my chest, opposite the rifle. The TV was still speaking to us as we finished packing. Big Steve took the first aid he held in the back. It looked military grade.

I gave him a look and he handed me an identical case. "Take it. There's a pharmacy near my house I plan on stopping at. If I were you, I'd try the one around the corner. Stock up."

I nodded and took the case, carefully putting it in my duffel. I was glad I lived next door. I could carry all of this, but it was possible I was going to need to take a second trip. Or commandeer a vehicle. Maybe both.

"Let me tell you the truth about Harvey Dent. In the words of Gotham's Police Commissioner, James Gordon."

Big Steve and I both stopped and turned toward the television.

Band was slowly unfolding paper from his coat and read from it with determination. "'The truth about Harvey Dent is simple in only one regard - it has been hidden for too long. After his devastating injuries, Harvey's mind has recovered no better than his mutilated face. He was a broken, dangerous man, not the crusader for justice that I, James Gordon, have portrayed him to be for the last eight years. Harvey's rage was indiscriminate. Psychopathic. He held my family at gunpoint, then fell to his death in the struggle over my son's life. The Batman did not murder Harvey Dent - he saved my boy. Then took the blame for Harvey's appalling crimes, so that I could, to my shame, build a lie around this fallen idol. I praised the madman who tried to murder my own child. The things we did in Harvey's name brought desperately needed security to our streets... But I can no longer live with my lie. It is time to trust the people of Gotham with the truth, and it is time for me to resign.'" Bane carefully folded the paper letting the words sink in.

We'd always been right. Batman had taken the fall. I never knew that about Dent, though I couldn't say I was completely surprised. After the explosion in the buildings, there were rumors Dent had snapped. Then again, it would be hard not to when half of your face had basically been melted off.

Bane was getting people to chant for Gordon's resignation. He held his hands up and motioned for something I couldn't see. The camera swung around and a tumbler tank began moving toward the gates of the prison.

"We take Gotham from the corrupt. The rich. The oppressors of generations who've kept you down with the myth of opportunity. And we give it to you, the people. Gotham is yours - none shall interfere. Do as you please, but start by storming Blackgate and freeing the oppressed. Step forward, those who would serve."

You could hear yelling and gunfire inside the prison. He was letting them free. All the convicts would be flooding out.

Big Steve pushed past me and shut the television off. "Stella. You get home. You lock your doors. You hole up. Do not try to get to Blake and Gordon right now. You'll get stuck or worse." He ripped his keys from his pocket and unhooked a small key from the ring and shoved it into my hands. "Top floor. Unit 515. It's full of backup supplies. Just in case something happens I want you to have a key. We'll go through the back and I want you to run inside. Do you understand me."

"Yes, sir."

He grabbed his bags and we hurried through the back door. Big Steve climbed into his truck and screeched away as fast as he could.

I moved quickly back into my building and took the stairs as quickly as I could. From the noises in the hallway it sounded as if people were barricading their doors. I couldn't blame them. I moved inside and slammed my door shut. I locked and bolted it. If I was a bit more paranoid I would have moved the bookcase in front, but I had other things to do.

I tossed my coat off and took off the rifle, placing it on the couch. I moved to my bedroom and grabbed my father's Glock. The shoulder rig I had taken from Big Steve's had been from the female line. The lines were thinner and were of a more comfortable fit. I properly adjusted it to before fitting the Glock inside. I drew with my right hand a few times to check comfort. I reached into the duffle bag and loaded the gun and tucked the spare clips into the other side. I took a small nylon bag and clipped it to a loop in my jeans before adding some shells for the sawed off shotgun.

I took a quick inventory of the first aid kit and shut it back up. I zipped the duffel and hid it behind the couch. I leaned the rifle on the other side of the bookcase and took out the walkie from my pocket. Taking a deep breath I pressed down. "John?"

"Stella? Christ. Where are you? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. How are things over there?"

I heard a door close and figured John had moved to the bedroom. "Tense to say the least. Where are you?"

"In my apartment. I was over at Big Steve's when we saw the news. I've got a duffle bag full and I'm almost done. I'm just running to the pharmacy and I'm set. I don't think I'm going to make it back there tonight."

"I could come get you."

"Yeah. You could come out here in the car you took and you'd be the only person on the road. Stay inside John. We're going to figure something out. I promise."

"Why are you going to the pharmacy?"

"I've got a shoddy little first aid, but if we have convicts taking over, I do not want them to be able to hold medicine over us. I'm stockpiling what I can get my hands on. My moral compass can worry about that later."

I could picture John sigh on the other end. "I can't stop you."

"That is correct."

"Please be safe. You call me if anything goes wrong."

"I promise. Just…please keep a cool head. I'm armed. I can handle this."

"You're armed?"

"And I have ammunition for you when I get there. I also have access to more when we need it. Just…trust me, John."

"I do. I really do, I just don't like being this far away when this is going down. Not when something like this happens. When the Joker was in Gotham, we were together. I don't like being this far apart."

I looked down at the walkie with a smile. "I know. We will not be far for long. I'm going to gather supplies in a bit and stick close to the buildings. Is there anything you know right now that you are going to need?"

"I don't know Stella. Use your best judgment. I don't know what we may get or what will happen. Just gather what you can and maybe we can negotiate later on. I may check the corner store behind my place. Grab all the batteries you can. Cell phones are still working, at least for now. I just got a call from Father Riley. People have already started holing up at St. Swithin's. Apparently it started as some of the volunteers looking to help with what they can. But, now people are going. There's a lot of room there and more bodies mean more people taking care of each other. Amazing how this is what it takes to make sure it's still standing."

"Be safe, John. I'll check in later, okay?"

"Agreed. Stella?" There was a pause, though his finger was still pressing the button, because I could head him breathing. "Be safe."

I bit my lip. He had been ready to say to say something and that hadn't been it. "I will. Stella out."

I clipped the walkie inside my pocket and stood back up. Time to go. I walked toward the door and doubled back into my kitchen. Inside the junk drawer I pulled out a little leather case. My father had thought it would be funny to give me a lock picking kit one year for my birthday. I wasn't too shabby. It had come in handy on quite a few occasions when I had been locked out of my place and when one of the storage closets at work had been locked. It was always nice working in an old building until you realized that over the years some keys had gotten lost. Now maybe the kit would be used for some questionable things, but not entirely nefarious. At least, that is what I was going to tell myself.

I walked out of my door quickly and as quietly as I could possibly manage. The streets were still very quiet. Say what you wanted to about my neighborhood, but we were far enough from Blackgate that I felt comfortable. I pressed against the side of the building and moved quickly toward our back lot. Just behind the lot was the pharmacy and it looked abandoned. I wasn't too surprised. Everyone was staying in their houses and I doubt anyone would risk it to go here. If people were going anywhere I assume they would head to the grocery stores. What people forgot was that pharmacies like these had canned goods, non-perishables, toiletries, and medicine. They may not have as wide a selection, but it would work in a pinch.

I found my way toward the back door to make sure no one had already tried to break in. Thankfully all was still dark and the glass wasn't broken. I went to work on the lock, all the while checking over my shoulder. Two minutes later I was in and shutting the door quickly behind me. First stop was medicine. I actually contemplated swiping my arm across the shelf and putting everything in the bag, but there was no reason to be insane. I went for the largest bottles of aspirin, Advil, and Benadryl. Then I moved toward the liquids; hydrogen peroxide, iodine, witch hazel, and I grabbed several boxes of Neosporin. I grabbed band aids, gauze, sports tape, and a box of butterfly closures. I paused and looked toward the prescription medicine. I hopped the counter and stocked up on birth control. Call me stupid, but take over or not, I was not going to let some psycho cause my schedule to be thrown off. I also recognized some stronger painkillers. I only remembered the name because three years ago those painkillers were my best friends as I recovered from shoulder surgery. I grabbed a few other bottles with names that sounded familiar, but I couldn't place what they were for as well as a box of epi pens.

I felt good about the medical part and moved toward other aspects. I was glad I knew this store well because I couldn't believe how dark it could get in the middle of the day. I started tossing breakfast and power bars into the bag while grabbing s few cans. I tried sticking to cereals so I wouldn't weigh the bag down too much. I'd trust John to get food while I grabbed normal travel kit essentials. Of course, there was nothing wrong with beef jerky and chocolate covered pretzels. Sometimes my taste in junk food confused me too.

I moved to the toiletries and cleared the shelves of toothbrushes and toothpaste. I wanted to do my part in the event we made it over to St. Swithin's. I grabbed deodorant, soap, and grabbed some shampoo and conditioner. I weighed the bag and decided it was full enough. I ran toward the back door and found my way out.

I started heading back toward my building at practically a sprint. I kept feeling like one of the tumblers I saw on the television would head toward me any second. I went through the front door and took the steps two at a time. As soon as I got to my hallway I breathed a partial sigh of relief. I locked the door back up and shut my blinds and closed the drapes. I moved to my couch and set my bags in front of me. Time to start sorting.

My cell phone started vibrating on the table and I stared at it. It was funny. In a time of dictatorship, you'd think the cell towers would be down. I grabbed my phone, but didn't recognize the number. "Hello?"

"Miss Sterling?"

The voice was familiar, but I couldn't quite place it. "Speaking."

"This is Lucius Fox."

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Mr. Fox, it's good to hear from you."

"It is good to be heard, I can assure you of that. I don't have much time right now. Off the top of your head what is one of the most secure buildings with old foundation."

"I would probably go with the old Gotham Bank. It may not look like much, but those doors are thick and solid. For a brief time the top floor, where most of the offices are, were used as the armory. If not the bank I would say the library. It's spacious and one of the oldest buildings in the city."

"I have a feeling the bank may be our best shot."

"Our?"

"Those of us left over from Wayne Enterprises."

I felt my eyes widen. "Sir, you need to stay off the streets."

"Oh, we know Miss Sterling. We're quite well hidden. I called you because as far as I am concerned you are the best authority on the layout of the city. And I know I can trust you. I trust my opinion and the opinion of Bruce Wayne."

"Wayne is with you? He's alive? But he's been missing. We've been trying to find him."

Fox sighed. "Sadly, Mr. Wayne is not with us. We don't know much, but there are whispers that indicate he is not here."

"And Gotham is without the Batman."

Fox was very quiet on the other end. "I am not sure what you mean, Miss Sterling."

"Mr. Fox, I want to help you, but please, let's not play this game. You are head of Wayne Enterprises and I expect you are the brains behind Batman's technology. I know about the tactical and weapons department. The funny thing about public information is that while it is always there, not everyone bothers to look for it. Amazing what you can hide in plain sight. This is not a threat or blackmail, sir. Please do not mistake me for a lowlife. I simply want you to understand what I know. I want to help in whatever way I possibly can."

"Miss Sterling, you truly do fascinate me. I promise to keep you informed, but I need to get my people to safety. Who are you protecting?"

"Myself, Detective John Blake, and Commissioner Gordon. We have weapons and are starting to gather provisions. Please do keep me in the loop."

"Thank you Miss Sterling. I am glad the Commissioner is quite safe. I will ask for one favor. Do not tell them where we are yet. I don't know if we will have to move right away and I want to gather our intelligence. I know Gordon will want to meet as soon as possible. I will call you with more information."

"Thank you, sir. I do appreciate it. I will keep your location secret for now."

"That is all I ask. Stay safe, Miss Sterling."

With that Lucius Fox hung up. Gotham may be under the reign over a mad mercenary, but we still had some of our brightest minds. There may still be hope for us.

* * *

**(John's POV)**

Evening had fallen and Gordon and I had been hard at work. We had tried making as many contacts as we could. From what we could tell there were only a dozen people we could trust who hadn't been trapped in the tunnels. These were cops that had been on leave and a few who hadn't been retired for long and were still in shape.

We managed to get to the corner store and gathered a good amount of supplies. Our timing had been rather perfect. Shortly after we came back into my apartment, the tumblers had been driving down the streets. As soon as we realized this Gordon and I had begin documenting their times.

Now I was in bed waiting for the next rumbles. I told Gordon I would take the night shift and held the walkie in my hand. I hadn't spoken to Stella since mid-afternoon when she told me she was home safe. I twirled the walkie around and pressed down. "Hey."

"Hey there stranger. How are things on the home front?"

"Not much change. We're keeping track of the tumblers in the street. It's still the first day so I can't be too sure of a pattern as of yet. Though the drives are less at night. Though I did notice something interesting. There were two kids, well teens that ran across as a tumbler was driving down the road. It kept going. Apparently, it has no interest in stopping anyone, so it's possible we have some movement in the city."

"That's good. I was planning on hiding from them while I was moving around, but knowing I won't be shot on sight is a plus. I don't think I need any extra scars just yet. Are you okay? Don't bullshit me, John. I heard Bane's speech. Gordon's speech."

I pressed the bottom of the walkie against my forehead. She always knew what I was thinking. Part of it drove me insane. The other part of me couldn't help, but appreciate the fact that she knew what I wanted to talk about. "Confused. Partially angry. I think part of me knew it, but I didn't want to think about it. I always knew Batman wasn't the villain they wanted him to be, but knowing about Dent…knowing what the Dent Act did…" I paused and shook my head. "It was a fucking lot to process. Everything has been. The past twenty-four, thirty-two, forty-eight, however the fuck many hours have been pretty insane."

"You never told me what happened before you got to the hospital."

I stared at the ceiling. I hadn't talked about it because I hadn't been ready to talk about it. I hadn't been thinking about it at all.

"John? John, did you fall asleep on me?"

I shook my head and hit the button. "I killed two men, Stella. Two men. Bane's men, but I've never done that before. By the time I got on the force things had been quiet. No one did much shooting anymore. They just came at me and I shot them. The first I got a clear shot of and the other tried to wrestle my gun from me. I tried to get him off and shot his truck. The bullet ricocheted straight into his back."

Stella was quiet for a moment, but then her voice came over the walkie with warmth. "You know, you were always too good with angles. I think that's why you're so good at pool."

I smiled to myself, but didn't respond.

"John, do not get hung up about this. You had to shoot them. They would have killed you. I would have never forgiven you for not fighting back, John. You need to know that. You always need to fight back."

"I know. I will."

"Please get some sleep, John. I'll see you tomorrow. Ammunition and all."

"Thanks, but I'd rather just see you to make sure you really are okay. For future reference, I'm not a fan of waking up to an empty bed."

"I will have to remember that. Goodnight, John." I could just picture the smartass smile on her face.

"Goodnight, Stella."

I placed the walkie beside my bed and folded my hands behind my head. It was funny how the chaos could help move things along. Stella would have never forgiven me as quickly as she had without things falling apart. Sometimes there was a little bit of good. Now, if I could only convince her to stay closer. Stay with me.

I sat up and moved toward the window, pressing a finger down on the blinds. It was dark and quiet. It had been over an hour since the last tumbler went down the street. I was still unsure if that was good news or not. Whatever it was, we would just have to wait to see.


	7. Assignments

**Siege of Gotham: Day 20**

**(Stella's POV)**

It had almost been a full month since Bane and his men had overtaken Gotham. Things started moving quickly. More quickly than I think we had really realized. Gordon had moved into John's apartment building which was becoming a hub for those of us trying to figure out our next steps. As we had learned, not all of the cops had been trapped in the tunnels. We had about a dozen men who had been out for any number of reasons. As much as they hated not being with their brothers, they realized how much more they could do on the outside.

Anything we could do was helping. In fact, I was on my knees in the middle of a cold November afternoon, sucking gas out of a car tank. John was crouched beside me, with a smirk on his face.

I moved the hose from my mouth and jammed it into the gas can at my feet. I spit a little beside me and turned to John trying to sound stern. "Wipe that smirk off your face, Blake."

John pulled me toward him by the loops of my jeans. John had been extra affectionate lately and I was not complaining. "Make me."

"John, I've been sucking-" I paused noticing the smile grow wider. I smacked him in the chest. Realizing where his mind had wandered. "Watch yourself."

He pulled me closer against him, trapping my arms against his chest. "I really don't care if your lips taste like gasoline. So do mine."

John moved a hand behind my head and pulled me in for a kiss. John urged my lips open, his other hand pressing into the small of my back. My fingers curled into the collar of his jacket searching his mouth for an escape. He did taste a bit like gasoline, but oddly I didn't matter. It was one of the hazards of siphoning gas. As long as you didn't swallow it, you were fine. I nipped his bottom lip, trying to bring him back to the present.

"John. A tumbler should be coming back in about five minutes."

John pressed his face against my neck, brushing his lips against my skin. "I can't help it. I've been watching you suck gasoline out of cars for the past half hour."

I grabbed him by the ear and pulled him to look at me. He looked dangerous and I couldn't ignore the fact it excited me. "We have work to do."

John moved my hand from his ear and kept his voice low. "Don't do that."

I pressed a finger against his throat, lips a breath away from his. "We. Have. Work. To. Do."

John grabbed hold of the gas can, carefully putting the top on before he pulled me with him toward the alley. We picked up the other gas can we filled up and headed back toward St. Swithin's. The building was getting real use now. People had come to hide behind its brick walls and found comfort in helping each other. The boys seemed happy enough to get to play with other kids. Plus with all the adults around, it was becoming more than just a boys' home. It was a home for everyone who needed one right now.

Most of the apartment buildings that were left, acted in a similar manner. The fancy buildings had been taken over by Bane's supporters; his crew, the escaped convicts, and some citizens that, while they didn't approve of all his ideas, liked the fact they could live the good life. The rest of us were living in our buildings helping each other when we could, but otherwise keeping close to our own.

Gordon and John had set up a taskforce to get as much information about Bane's rules as possible. Things were a tiny bit terrifying. For example, there were courts. A "court" of "peers" deciding if whatever you did wrong should result in death or exile. Exile hadn't sounded so bad until you realized they shoved you into the river and told you to swim to the other side. The problem was that this was November and no one could swim far. People would start to freeze and drown. Soon the water would freeze over and maybe people would have a little bit of a better chance. Though since Dr. Jonathan Crane was running the court, there wasn't much hope. Crane had been the head psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum years ago until it was found out that he was literally driving his patients mad. He had created some kind of gas that people had started calling a fear toxin. He had gone missing for a while, but Batman had apprehended him before the Joker took over the city. This meant that Crane had a long time to mull over things and unleash his madness over the citizens of Gotham. Things had not been going well for those unhappy with Bane's rule. Well, for those who didn't have our connections is hadn't been going well.

On my end, I was doing a bit of everything. I was checking on my building and helping where I could with them. I had also done what was possible with backing up most of the Gotham archives. Amazing what you could do when you started playing with the backup system. Aside from saving the history of the city, I was doing my own little part to save my home. Aside from doing legwork with John, I was working with Lucius Fox. Wayne Enterprises had taken up shop in the bank. Since there wasn't a cash flow going, most of the buildings in the city had just turned into living spaces. Fox had introduced me to Miranda Tate. Tate had taken Wayne's place on the board and was an active chair up until the takeover. Fox seemed to trust her and she had invested heavily in Wayne Enterprises. She seemed to have as much to lose as the rest of us.

"Shit." I stopped walking when I realized the time. If I hadn't been thinking about Fox and Tate I would have forgotten that I had a meeting with them today.

John stopped with a half smile. "Going to go meet with the think tank?'

I ran my hands through my hair with a laugh. "You know, you try to kid, but you always end up sounding jealous."

John shook his gas can at me. "I think I'd rather take a swig of this than sit in on one of those meetings." He kissed my forehead. "You okay to head over there? I really want to get this to Father Reilly. Too many people are siphoning gas. I want to make sure the bus has enough just incase there is an evacuation."

"I know. I want you to get there, but I need to get over to the bank. There was something wrong when Fox called me. I don't know what, but something isn't right."

"It can't be that bad if he didn't ask you over right away. By the way, thank him for fixing the walkie talkies. It's been fantastic."

After the first week of the siege, Bane's people had taken out the cell towers. It had caused some panic, but we still had walkie talkies. The problem was most of the walkies were from children's stores and didn't function well. After a visit to Fox, our wavelengths were strong and clear. It had made coordinating our jobs much easier and it was nice to have communication strong.

"I will." I gave John my gas can and gave him a quick kiss. "Are you going to work at St. Swithin tonight or are you going home?"

"I should be home. Why? Thinking about pulling an all-nighter with the think tank?"

"Not sure. It depends on what the situation is."

"Stella. You know you can just move into my place."

I crossed my arms, not really meeting John's eyes. He had been trying to convince me that staying with him would make sense. I know it might seem silly with everything else going on, but I didn't want to jump into things. "I know."

John sighed. "You're insane. Completely insane. And I _must_ be insane."

"I like you that way."

"Just let me know where you'll be, okay?"

"I promise."

* * *

**(John's POV)**

I followed Father Reilly into his office and put the gas cans by his filing cabinets.

Father Reilly looked at the cans confused. "What's this?"

"For the bus incase there's a chance for an evacuation. Just keep them in here. People are siphoning all the parked cars."

"Really?"

I grinned. "How do you think I got it?"

Father Reilly gave a little shake of his head, but I saw the smile. I hadn't been the worst kid to come through this house, but I admit I was a handful at times. I think he was glad that Stella's father had unofficially taken me in so often. I know it had always pained him that he couldn't officially let Donovan Sterling adopt me. I had been upset at first, but just realizing that I had a family that loved me was enough for me.

Father Reilly leaned back in his chair. "And how many cars did you siphon from?"

"I'll split my penance of Hail Mary's with Stella."

He laughed. "And how is she doing? I haven't seen her here in a few days."

"She's doing well. She's been working in her building, helping me out, and I don't even really know what else she's been doing."

"I see not much has changed. Now, how are the two of you doing? Not at each other's throats I hope."

I rubbed the back of my neck. "No, we're doing really well. Or as well as you can be in the middle of a militia takeover."

"Have you finally told the girl you love her?"

I snapped my head up. "What now?"

Father Reilly frowned at me. "I will use your full name if you keep acting foolish. You are too protective not to love her. And I do not mean just as a friend. You've grown to love the girl, whether you planned on it or not."

"Feelings don't matter right now. What matters-"

"Feelings _always_ matter my boy. _Especially_ during these times. She loves you too. You never need to question that." Reilly must have sensed my discomfort because he cleared his throat. "Any other news to share? Is the Commissioner-"

I shook my head. "The less you know the better, Father. Trust me on that right now. How are the boys doing?"

"Power's been on more, so they get some TV. Having other people has been actually quite good. You know, if we get through all of this, I think there will be a couple that will actually get adopted. I'm quite serious about that."

I smiled and stood up. "That's good to here. I will never badmouth my time here, but having a family to call your own…that's something all these boys dream of. I know I always did. I was lucky enough to have my family here and another family that took me in when they could."

Father Reilly spoke up as I went to walk out the door. "Blake, you be careful out there. They're hunting down cops like dogs."

I nodded and carefully shut the door behind me. I looked down at my walkie and stuffed it back in my pocket. I would hear from Stella when she was done and I needed to go see Gordon anyway.

Why did Father Reilly need to say that? I like this beginning of things with Stella. I liked knowing where she was and knowing that most of the time when I woke up she was next to me. It hadn't been that long, but I was getting used to it. I had always found it amusing to watch Stella when she fell asleep, but little by little I was appreciating it more and more. I enjoyed the smell of her on my pillow and the way her body pressed against mine during the night.

Though, that part was starting to make me want to rip her pants off, but I knew better. Some nights I would wake up and Stella's body would be firmly pressed against me. She would be slightly shivering so I would pull the sheet a little further up over us. When I did that she'd make a little noise in her sleep. It was halfway between a sigh and a whimper. During that noise she would end up grinding her body a little further against me. The little noise and movement were almost enough for me to wake her up and try to move our relationship forward. Part of me was also curious if she actually was awake and did this just to drive me insane.

We were still working out what was okay and what wasn't. We hadn't progressed much, but honestly sleeping next to her, kissing her, and pulling her toward me when I wanted was enough for me. I loved the way she responded by smiling during a kiss or biting my lip before she went off for one of her meetings.

I shook my head and turned the corner to my apartment building, but stopped off on the second floor. With people moving around and staying with family and friends, there were many apartments that had been left open, as well as a few that had been open before the siege. Gordon had moved into one of the rooms and it had also turned into our command center.

I walked in and saw Gordon looking over a map with Kevin Ryan. Ryan had been one of the cops that had been off duty the day of the tunnel exercise. There were a handful of others like Ryan who had tried contacting everyone they could after the siege. Along with the few active duty that had been out sick or somewhere, a few of the recently retired officers had joined in. Actually anyone with a connection to the department had been in contact with us.

Big Steve, owner of a gun shop and range, had been one of the first to contact us. He had been the one to load Stella up with ammunition and her new rifle. He was holding down the fort at his home, but we had gone to see him a few times. Big Steve had a prosthetic leg that made it difficult for him to move in these conditions. The man was proud and didn't want to admit it at first, but when he took into account that none of us really knew what the people in the tumblers would stop us for, he realized it might be for the best. We went to his house now and then for the space and to help take stock of the weapons he had. If an uprising was coming, we should be okay. Especially after he told us that there were still weapons in storage. Though Stella had the key, which scared me just a bit.

Gordon motioned me over. "Anything new one the street, Blake?"

"Just came back from St. Swithin's. They don't know much more than we do. The power has been going on more so the kids are watching TV. Normal stations are coming in, so that's a good thing. They're holding down the fort pretty well. Others in the city are siphoning cars for the gas. Stella helped me get gas for the bus for St. Swithin's."

"Where is she?"

"She's with the think tank. They're up to something, though I'm not sure what it is. She moved pretty quickly, but if it was anything red level I don't think she would have been helping me suck gas out of abandoned cars."

Ryan laughed and shook his head. "I wouldn't be too sure about that, Casanova."

I frowned at him. "Can we focus?"

Gordon sat down in his armchair with a small smile on his face. "You know, we think all day and dream about all of this. I think it's only fair we rest our brains and focus on something else for a bit. How are things with Stella?"

"I'm not discussing this."

Ryan leaned against the wall, smirk firmly in place. "It's only fair if you share the stories of your woe."

"There is no woe. There is no story. You can all go question someone else."

"Come on Blake. You have an active romantic life."

"I don't know if I would call it active." I winced realizing I had said that out loud.

Gordon held up his hands. "I don't need to hear this. Never mind. I take back my questions and I'll change the topic. You said she's with the think tank. Did they call her while you were out? Did you hear anything?"

I shook my head. "No. She had a meeting with them beforehand. She was a little worried, but if it was anything that bad he would have had her go over there right away instead of making an appointment with her. Plus, we would have been first to know."

"I wouldn't be too sure." Gordon shook his head at my look. "Not that they wouldn't tell us. Don't be confused on that. All I mean is that Stella is part of the think tank, she's not just a visitor. If something is wrong, they will bring her in on it. She may not be a physicist or engineer, but the girl sees things at a very different level."

I sighed. "Tell me about it."

Ryan smiled. "What happened, Blake?"

"Nothing."

"Come on, Blake. Share your woes. Seriously, my brain needs a bit of normal after going over time tables and maps."

I sighed and took a seat on the couch. "Fine. I kinda asked Stella to move in with me."

"Seriously?

"No. Not seriously. That was the first lie I could think of." I glared at Ryan. "Of course, seriously. If she moved in with me she would be closer to all of our moving points and I wouldn't have to worry about her walking all the way up here and back."

"Blake, it's not that far. The girl likes to keep her independence." Ryan paused looking at me carefully. "Oh, I see what this is. You think she's not taking you seriously."

"I didn't say that."

"But you're thinking it. Try seeing it from her perspective."

Both Gordon and I stared at Ryan. He wasn't a misogynist or anything, but hearing him say to take things from the female perspective was a new one for him.

He waved his hands at his sides. "Yeah, yeah. 'Oh, look at Ryan, he's being all thoughtful.' Can it. I'm serious about this. This is day 20 of the siege. How long has it been since the two of you figured things out?"

"Uh, about the same. Slightly less."

"Think about this as a non-siege perspective. You're just about 20 days into your relationship. Would you think about asking her to move in?"

"No." I winced. "Because that would be crazy."

Gordon folded his hands, not really looking at us. "Thinking about a non-siege perspective. Outside the box."

I looked over at him confused. "Sir?"

He shook his head. "Ryan has a point. We've all been thinking about this from the one perspective. Just on how to work around them. We need to think about how to control them more. How to get them to bring us more than just want we need, but what we want. To do that we need to hear from Fox and that will be happening quite soon. Whatever he needs Stella for should help us move along. We've got a new heading gentlemen." He gave a yawn and looked at his watch. "Ryan, go get some sleep. Blake, go shoot a message to the boys in the tunnels. Then go home. Apologize to Stella. Don't make things more difficult for yourself."

I sighed and stood up. "It's a bit late for that."

* * *

My walkie started ringing just as I shut off my lamp. I grabbed it quickly, unsure of who would be checking in this late. Whoever it was, it couldn't be a good thing. I grabbed the walkie glad I moved the charging dock beside my bed. "Yeah?"

"John…are you near home?"

I paused looking at the walkie. "What's wrong Stella?"

"Will you come over tonight?"

"Stella. What's wrong?" She wasn't using any of the codewords to say that someone had captured her or was nearby. I wasn't sure why, but that worried me more.

"I just want to see you. Please?"

"Yeah. I'm here. How far are you? Should I meet you?"

"I'm around the corner. I'll see you in a minute."

I got up and turned the lamp back on. She didn't sound panicked, just off. Almost sad, but not quite there. I blinked walking around the room and picking up some clothes on the floor when I heard the key in my lock. Around the corner my ass, she must have been in the lobby when she called.

"In here Stella."

Stella peaked her head around the doorway looking tired. She should considering that it was ten thirty at night. When she saw I had downgraded to sweatpants and a tee-shirt she seemed to relax. Unbuttoning her jacket she tossed it onto the floor and moved into my arms.

I stroked her hair, slightly confused. She was in a loose sweater and sweatpants, which meant she had gone home since I last saw her. Her arms were around me, pressing into my back.

I kissed her temple. "What's wrong?"

"I just want to stay with you tonight."

I grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at me. "Stella."

She pressed her lips against mine, pausing my thoughts. Her hands moved to the back of my neck, pulling me toward her. I grabbed her hips, roughly pulling her toward me. She responded by pressing against me and nipping my lip. I growled slightly and forced her lips open so I could taste her. Her tongue flicked to touch mine, sending a little spark through me. Part of her was cold, but crisp. It seems that the temperature had started dropping further into the night. My hands moved back and grabbed her ass earning a little gasp from her. She started squirming, but not away from me, but toward me.

Stella drew away from the kiss taking a shaky breath. "When I said stay the night, I just meant stay here, John."

I looked down at her noticing her chest rising and falling visibly. "Really? Are you sure?"

She nodded slowly, her body still pressed against me, making it very hard to focus. "I mean it. I'm sorry, I just…I just wanted to stay here tonight. Maybe this was a bad idea."

I closed my eyes and pressed my forehead against hers. As an extra measure I slowly moved my hips back, needed a little extra distance. "No. It wasn't. I'm the one who should be sorry. Come on. We'll just go to bed."

Stella gave me a light kiss and took my hand as she moved back toward my bed. She pulled me into the bed behind her and turned so she was facing me. Her eyes were bright, a green that was rare to see. They reminded me of those of a cat, an unusual shade and always calculating the world around her. Her hair was pulled back in a pony tail that had been drooping as the day wore on, but I like that it still kept her face bare.

I touched her cheek and smiled as her eyes fluttered shut when I did so. "Are you going to tell me why you came?"

"I missed you. I just wanted to see you." Stella's eyes opened just a bit. "Is that such a bad thing?"

I let my fingers run over her lips thoughtfully. "No. It really isn't. Pardon me for being just a bit paranoid."

She scrunched her nose a bit and closed her eyes again. "Can the paranoid when it comes to me. Never question my want to be here. Just shut up and accept the fact that I'm here. It isn't a new thing, just in a new capacity."

"I know. It was just that your tone worried me. That and it's pretty late for you to be out. You just made me nervous."

Her lips lifted in a smile, eyes still closed. "You didn't seem so nervous when I kissed you."

"Yeah, well that's another step to tackle another day."

"Tackle? You'd take me out completely."

I shook my head and pulled her close. "Stella, just go to sleep. If you keep talking I'm going to have to put a pillow over your face."

She tucked her head under my chin and let out a sigh. "I'm glad I still have you, John. You have no idea."

I pulled her a little closer and closed my eyes. "Oh, I think I do. I think I do."


	8. Blizzard Conditions

**Siege Day 43**

* * *

**(Stella's POV)**

This snow was ridiculous. December had come in with serious aggression and with it came a blizzard. Well, with what was shaping out to be a blizzard. I was leaving yet another think tank meeting to see that several more inches of snow had settled down. Settled down, however, may have been a bit of a mild way of putting it. The snow was packed down and was more than just a friendly dusting. This was the type of snow when front doors couldn't be opened because of the pressure. I had only been standing outside for a minute and I was already covered in snow. I checked my watch and swore. The tumblers would be making their rounds soon and I just wanted to get home. More than that, I wanted to get home without being seen.

The guards hadn't been very strict about keeping people inside, especially if they weren't dressed for the weather. I had walked with John before as the tumblers had gone by and we hadn't been stopped. It's possible that it was because we looked cold and seemed as if we just wanted to get indoors. Looking vulnerable had its advantages these days. Still, I didn't want to risk it. With the snow coming down I didn't know how forceful Bane's men would be about keeping people inside. I took a turn down an alley as I heard the tumblers coming. I really wish I had brought my gloves. I thought it was cold earlier and yet the temperature had dropped even further. I figured it was in the twenties earlier today and probably in the teens now. Though with the wind picking up it was creeping into the low single digits. I'd love to make it home before I turned into an icicle.

I heard screaming and paused, hiding myself behind a dumpster before looking out into the street. This couldn't be a good thing. The streets were quiet these days, even more so since winter had settled in. Two men were fighting on the sidewalk. One looked to have a split lip and had fallen onto the ground. The other man was standing over him yelling at the people in the doorway to go back inside.

"You good for nothing little fucker." The man who was standing looked to be in his mid fifties. Built like an ex football player, he stood a bit above six foot. He looked enraged and his hands were balled up in fists. He would be at the top of the list of people you wouldn't want to get in a bar fight with. "I let you into my home and give you a place to stay. And you're fucking stealing food? What the fuck were you thinking? We're all trying to stay positive and ration what we have and what we get. We don't know if food supplies are going to continue and you risk it by stealing from us?"

The man on the ground crawled backwards in an attempt to get up. His was younger, probably in his late twenties, early thirties. He was lanky and had the look of a guy who spent a lot of his time reading manuals and fiddling with anything he could get his hands on. "I wasn't stealing. I was just keeping what's rightfully mine. You weren't going to eat it and I need to watch out for myself too. I've been working my ass off to make sure your building is running. This is the thanks I get?"

The tumbler slowed and two men climbed out. I moved closer to the dumpster, knowing I would regret waiting later. The snow was already a foot deep and my jeans were starting to stick to my skin. I turned the collar of my pea coat up as the wind picked back up and hoped that I was hidden well enough. Damn my curiosity.

Bane's men walked over guns are their sides. The taller of the two addressed the men. "What is the problem here?"

The older man stood up straight. "He's been stealing the food you all have been providing for us. I'm throwing him out. I have people to care for and I will not abide a thief."

Bane's man motioned to the younger man with his gun. "Is this true? Shall we bring you to the courts?"

The younger man climbed to his feet looking angry for the first time. "Fuck your courts. I'm just trying to take care of me, same as everyone else in this city. You're leader is a sadistic son of a-"

A shot rang out and the younger man's eyes widened as he started coughing, blood bubbling up from his lips. He touched his stomach and feel to his knees. Giving one last look up at his shooter, he fell over and stopped moving. The snow around him grew crimson and you could see the snow melt with the blood.

I shrank behind the dumpster as the guard spoke briefly with the older man. I needed to get out of here, but now was not the time to risk drawing attention. The wind started whipping up and looked up at the fire escape a bit worried at the amount of creaking coming from it.

The tumbler began rolling again and I breathed a sigh of relief. I turned to hurry off and was stopped by the ladder of the fire escape come unhinged and crash down. I jumped back just in time to miss the ladder, and fell backwards. While the ladder missed me, the snow it dislodged did not. I was under a pile of snow and it was clinging to me. I moved trying to brush it off, but a good portion had found its way under my coat. I could feel myself shivering and was not thrilled about this. I moved against the wind heading toward John's apartment. There was no way I was making it home in this weather.

I was shivering and kicked John's door. I would have knocked, but my hands were almost completely numb. The distance to John's grew in length when the weather turned nasty. The wind had picked up halfway here and it was getting dangerous outside. The snow was coming down in sheets and visibility was at about five feet ahead, if that. I was a bit angry that I wouldn't make it to my place, but at least I knew John's building was well protected.

The door opened slowly, but as John caught sight of me he pulled me in. "Jesus Christ, Stella. What happened to you?"

I licked my lips slowly, trying to gather my thoughts. The drastic change in temperature between inside and outside was making me feel a bit slow. "Snow fell on me. Long story. No way in hell was I going to make it home. I'm freezing and I need some help."

John nodded and started to unbutton my jacket. I had been attempting to do it, but my fingers were useless at working the buttons. He was dressed in sweatpants and a shirt, looking more relaxed than I'd seen him in a few days.

Things had been going well, both with the resistance and with us. John had accepted that I wasn't ready to rush into moving in together and told me he realized how crazy it sounded. We hadn't moved any of our belongings into each other's places, at least nothing more than usual. I still had a toothbrush and a shirt or two at his place and he had extra sweats at mine. Nothing new and we both accepted that.

I shrugged out of my coat and kicked my shoes off, slowly wiggling my toes. John bent down and slipped my socks off, throwing them behind him.

When he touched my skin he jumped up. "Holy shit, Stella. You're frozen."

I shivered and nodded. "I wasn't fucking kidding, John. I need to get out of these clothes, just give me a hand. I'm wet, I'm cold, and am hoping to hell that I don't have frostbite."

I shrugged off my holster resting it on the kitchen counter. Pulling my shirt over my head, I saw that John had done the same. John was well built. Nothing overly muscular, but he was in good shape. He had nice abs and his chest was well defined. Pretty good for a man who really only exercised in the summer months when he could swim and show off to his heart's content. Actually, pretty damn good.

"John. Not that I'm complaining or anything, but why did you take your shirt off?"

"You're freezing. Body to body contact is suppose to help raise your body temperature so you don't succumb to hypothermia."

I bit my lip with a smile. He was being completely serious. It was rather adorable how much of a Boy Scout John actually could be. "That is true. I was just thinking more along the lines of a nice hot shower. A long one."

John groaned and covered his eyes. "I'm a fucking idiot."

I grabbed his hand, watching him jump. Maybe I was a bit colder than I realized. "Sorry. And no you're not an idiot. I appreciate the thought, but a shower would work a bit more quickly. Can you just help me with the jeans?"

John gave a little smile and knelt before me. "Weirdest reason a woman has ever had to get me to take off her clothes."

John's fingers reached up to undo the button and zipper. He rolled the fabric down my legs as I carefully stepped out of it. I had a hand on his shoulder and looked down at him for a moment unsure of what to do. His hands moved up my legs, lightly rubbing my skin. Aside from the fact his hands felt like hot metal against my skin, his touch sent little sparks through me. I wasn't entirely sure how comfortable I was with him kneeling in front of me. It was giving me too many ideas.

John met my eyes and his fingers ran up my legs, resting just below my ass. "Anything else I can help you with?"

I nodded and he stood up inches in front of me, hands falling back to his sides. "The clasp of my bra…"

John reached a hand behind me before I could turn around. With an expert flick, my clasp came undone and I held the fabric against my breast. He had skills. No doubt about that. I don't even think I could unhook my bra with one hand.

"Thank you." I moved past him toward his bathroom, realizing I seriously needed that shower.

"Hey, Stella?"

I turned by the door seeing John staring at me. I could only imagine what this looked like. I was cold, a bit wet, and dressed in an unhooked bra and cheeky panties. "Yeah?"

"I'll leave a pair of pajamas by the sink and throw your clothes in the dryer." He shoved his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants watching me carefully. Even with the slightly sleepy look, John was alert and would probably be watching me like a hawk all night. For once, I really did not think I would mind. "Take as much time as you need."

* * *

**(John's POV)**

I was back in bed by the time Stella came out of the bathroom. Stella was looking better than she had when she first got here. Her lips were no longer blue and her cheeks were back to a healthy shade of pink. I couldn't hold back the smile as she came into the bedroom in my pajamas. She had given them to me one Christmas saying that everyone needed a pair of flannel pajamas. They were ridiculous, but they were actually decent on the colder winter nights. They were probably the best thing I owned to keep her warm.

Stella walked toward my side of the bed and held the drawstrings for the pants out. "Help."

I grinned and pulled the strings a bit, mostly just to pull her closer to me. "I like this look on you."

"Oh really?" Her hair was still a bit damp and she shook her head, sending a few beads of water at me. She laughed and climbed over me to get under the covers. "I'm still cold."

I grabbed her hand pulling it closer for a better look. Her nail beds were no longer blue and her fingers weren't that nasty shade of red anymore. Her skin on the other hand, was still too cold for my linking. I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her close. "Why were you out there? Anything you needed to talk to them about could have waiting. You know the weather was turning."

Stella gave me the look that told me she wasn't a fool. "I just wanted to get stuff done. The weather was supposed to stay mild until later tonight. I figured I had enough time to get there and go home. The snow wasn't too bad when I was there, it just started getting bad on my way back. Then I got delayed by the tumblers."

"They stopped you?" I was starting to think she was trying to drive me insane. Stella hasn't been as much of a troublemaker as she was an instigator. Hearing about the tumblers wasn't making me feel very confident about her wandering around the city.

"They got involved in a skirmish over on Grove Street. Nothing that shooting someone in the head didn't solve apparently." She released a heavy sigh. "John, I don't feel like talking about it, okay? No lectures tonight. Just…Just keep me warm."

She slid her hands behind my neck and moved in to kiss me. Her lips were still cold and it was as if she tasted like winter. I grabbed her and pulled her against me. My hands worked up slowly underneath her shirt, just above her waist. She shivered just a bit. I wasn't surprised. Her skin was so cold it almost felt feverish under my touch.

I moved back and pulled my shirt off. "The shower wasn't enough. I think we're going to have to warm you up the old fashioned way."

Stella watched me carefully, lips curving up in a Cheshire cat type of smile. "I think maybe you're right." She pressed a hand against my stomach, flexing her fingers. My muscle contracted at her touch and her smile grew.

"Of course, I'm right." I pressed her against the mattress and started unbuttoning the shirt. I could have just slid it over her head, it was big enough to do that, but I liked this. It gave me time and set a pace. It also let me trap her between my knees.

While I was unbuttoning, Stella had moved onto her elbows and was kissing a line up my neck. She started nibbling my ear when I managed the last button. Good timing because if she tried that earlier that shirt would have just been ripped off. I looked back down at her glad I'd waited.

Stella was still on her elbows looking at me, though there was nothing cocky in that look. There should have been. Stella had fair skin and it looked deliciously touchable. Her breasts were round and whether the cold or the excitement, her nipples were hard and dark. Her stomach was toned from all her hours of beating the sit out of punching bags and yoga on her roof. Without the shirt I could see the pants were riding low on her hips and I was wondering how long they would need to stay on.

Stella's hands started to curl into fists and she looked nervous. She had a small frown on her face and looked ready to cover up and run. "John?"

I smiled and leaned to kiss her, arms pressing on either side of her as I lowered myself down. "Just admiring the view."

Stella gave a little sigh of relief and let me press her back down. Her hands slowly moved up my back. Her touch was light and caused me to shiver against her. Skin against skin felt incredible, as if our body temperatures were fighting each other.

I leaned on one elbow and deepened the kiss, allowing my free hand travel up from her stomach. I cupped her breast and began massaging it while I explored her mouth. Stella was opening herself entirely tonight and I planned on truly taking advantage of this opportunity.

I broke the kiss and dragged my lips down Stella's neck, biting a spot just above her collarbone. She let out a little sigh and moved her hands to my lower back, nails raking my skin. I moved my mouth to her breast, admiring how just soft her skin was. I flicked her nipple with my tongue and heard her give a little gasp. I increased pressure on her other breast and pulled her nipple with my teeth. Stella started grinding her hips against mine, nails digging into my skin.

I changed sides, giving Stella the attention she needed. She on the other hand, seemed to want some more attention. Her nails were digging deeper into my skin and climbing up my back. When her hips pushed against mine this time I had to stop and catch my breath.

I lifted myself up on my elbows again. "You seem a bit impatient, Stella."

Her cheeks were flushed, but she still managed a smile. "I don't know if impatient is the word." She knocked her hips against mine again and her smiled widened.

I kissed her throat and slid my hand under the fabric of her pajama bottoms. My fingers traced through the soft curls and slid a single finger to part her lips. Her eyes widened just a touch as I pressed her nub. I slipped a finger inside her; glad she was already a bit wet. Moving my finger inside her, I started increasing the pace. I started making little circles against her nub with my thumb, loving the way her lip started quivering. She gasped as I added a second finger and I captured her mouth with my own.

Stella slipped one hand down my chest and moved under the waistband of my sweatpants. She broke the kiss, moving her lips to my ears. Her voice was getting a bit breathy. I couldn't say I was too surprised with the way her hips were rolling. "I thought body to body contact was suppose to keep me warm. It seems that there may be a bit too much clothing." She pressed her fingers across the front of my boxer briefs, tracing the fabric lightly.

I pulled her up and pushed the shirt off of her shoulders. I tossed it on the floor and laid her back down, stripping her of her bottoms as well. I moved to my back and pushed my sweatpants and briefs off, tossing them with the growing pile of clothes. Before I could do anything else, Stella was on top of me. She was straddling my waist and slid a hand between her own legs to start stroking me. I moved up at her touch and she left a trail of light kisses down my throat. My hands slid up the back of her thighs and cupped her ass.

Stella's stroking, turned to pumping and my fingers were digging hard into her. She had moved herself back so I could watch her every movement. This had meant my hands had slid down her legs and were back at my sides. This allowed me to lift just a bit up on my elbows to watch Stella more carefully. Stella was keeping very heavy eye contact with me, which was making me start to lose thoughts of control and pace.

In the dark of my room I could clearly make out every detail of her body. Those cat eyes were watching me, and her lips were in a parted smile. Her breasts were large, firm, and heaving at the moment. Her waist curved into hips that could make any man fall onto primal urges. Her legs were thick, but well toned and holding her in position at the moment. One hand was resting high up on her thigh and I had to wonder just how hard she was fighting not to touch herself. Her other hand started pumping me harder, realizing where my gaze had gone.

I groaned and squeezed my eyes for a moment. She'd be the death of me. I grabbed her by her knees pulling her forward. She squeaked and wrapped her hands around my wrists. I positioned her over me and she started to take me in slowly. She was so fucking tight. Looking at her face made me decide to screw the pace. I grabbed her hips and pushed her down on me in one fluid motion. We both swore, but the motion was perfect.

"John…" Stella's voice came out as panting and her hands pressed against my shoulders. Her hips were still rolling as she moved up and down on me. Her eyes looked slightly glazed and I realized she was near her climax. Good, she deserved a few good ones tonight. "John. Warm me up."

I smiled and placed my hand against the small of her back to keep her in place as I pressed my back against the headboard. From her position she was towering above me. I moved my free hand to her left breast, taking the nipple of her right in my mouth. Stella's skin was more than just cold. She had her own scent that made me want to pull her closer to me, if that was even possible. Stella was moaning softly, hands wrapped in my hair. I bit her nipple gently and gave a hard thrust inside her. She let out a cry and I felt her burst around me.

I didn't slow my pace. Instead I picked it up, riding through Stella's climax. She was shaking against me, but somehow managed to keep my pace. I pulled at her nipple with my teeth, tweaking the other with my fingers. Stella's hands moved to my face, pulling it up to look at her. Once we made eye contact she clenched herself as she pushed down on me.

I felt my eyes widen and groaned as she rolled her hips. My arms wrapped around her, holding her against me, unwilling to let go. "Stella. Fuck. You're going to kill me. You are going to drain the life out of me and I will go out a happy, happy man."

Her hands moved to my neck and she was smiling again. She ran her thumb down my throat, "Oh really? Well if you don't mind, I'd like to keep you alive. Dead wouldn't suit you well. It wouldn't do much for me either. I like you alive. And hard. And fucking me."

I smiled, looking up at her. "That I can do." I gripped her hard and regained control. I was focused on the pace and the pathway to my own release, but I couldn't look away from Stella's face.

She was flushed and her eyes were fixed on my face, though admittedly a bit out of focus. Her lips were bright from her worrying them with her teeth and they were parted just a touch. Everything in her face just screamed at me to keep going. To stay with her and never let her get too far from me. To keep her by me and by my bed at all costs. I would be more than happy to comply with those wishes.

That was when I started feeling the pressure around me. I could hear my heart in my ears and felt a fire shoot through my stomach. I knew it was coming and took care to push Stella almost all the way off me before I slammed her back toward me. I buried my face against her chest as I spilled inside her.

It took me a bit to regain my baring and I slid down the headboard. Stella moved off of me, still shaking just a bit. She curled into my side as I fully laid down staring at the ceiling. She drew the covers around us and rested her head on my chest.

I moved my arm behind her and buried my face into her hair. "You're something else Stella. You really are."

She wrapped her arm around me and gave a happy sigh. "Amazing how you can go from yelling at me for being out in a blizzard to bedding me in such a short amount of time."

"Maybe I had a good reason." I breathed in deeply, liking the way my shampoo smelled on her. "Hey Stella?"

"John?"

"How are you feeling now?"

I could hear the smile in her voice. "I'm warm."

"Good." I kissed the top of her head and closed my eyes. It could be chaos outside, but right now it was perfect in here.


	9. Birthday Boy

**Siege Day 62**

**(John's POV)**

I wanted to kill Stella an hour ago. It was my birthday and with the siege I hadn't planned on celebrating it. I didn't think that celebrating birthdays was all that important. We had celebrated Christmas and New Years, but that was a universal thing. That was to keep spirits up. My birthday wasn't as important, or so I thought this morning.

Now I was sitting on my couch clutching a glass and laughing. It was a small get together with the unit we were working with. The Commissioner had brought me a well aged scotch and told me he had been saving it for a special occasion. He had been pleased to find out from Stella that the occasion had come. For the non-scotch drinkers, Stella had rounded up quite a bar to choose from. I shouldn't have been too surprised though. Stella was good about finding things. Plus she had moved most of her personal stock into my apartment.

After the night of pulling her in from the cold, we agreed that she should, at the very least, keep clothing here. I don't think it even took a full week before we realized we were just going to be living together. Living with Stella was one of the easiest transitions of my life. I mean I had stayed with her for extended times before, but this just felt right. We slept together, went off together in the morning, and I didn't have to worry about her at night because she was next to me in bed.

Stella caught my eye as she grabbed empty beer bottles from the table and gave me a wink. Oh, and the sex. The sex was a major plus. I watched as she walked away, suddenly quite happy she suggested we all dress up for the celebration. At first I groaned, but then I realized she meant she would dress up as well. She was in a charcoal pencil skirt with a small slit up the back. It hugged her well and I had a hard time pulling my eyes away from how perfect it made her ass look. She had paired the skirt with a simple navy blouse. She had kicked off her heels earlier, finding it easier to walk in her stocking feet. She rinsed the bottles in the sink and cracked her neck. She looked so at home in my apartment. Good.

Gordon must have caught me staring because he clinked his glass with mine. "It is good to see how well things have been going with the two of you. In the middle of all of this, I am glad to see the two of you happy."

I gave him a smile, but realized it was only half hearted. "Yeah, well we may as well enjoy things while we can. Especially with this time bomb."

Two days ago, on day 60 of the siege, Stella had called me. She had said that Gordon and I needed to meet with the think tank as soon as possible. Fox, Tate, and Stella had informed us that regardless who held the button to detonate the bomb, it would not be enough. This was a time bomb. We had 45 days left. We had been trying to send word to the outside for help. Through our supplies and list of demands we were hoping to have someone come in on one of the next deliveries. We needed outside forces. We needed an escape plan. Regardless of the policy of not negotiating with terrorists, we needed a way to get people to safety. If this bomb went off it would take out Gotham and probably half of the bridge out of here. Maybe more. The exact radius was a bit sketchy.

Gordon sighed and tapped his glass against his lips. "We can hope, Blake. It's a strange thing, an addiction really. Our minds and souls will cling to hope with our last dying breath. I am never too sure if it is a blessing or a curse."

I brought my glass to my lips, watching Stella lean against my kitchen counter and laughing with Kevin Ryan. A blessing or a curse. It really was something to ponder. How would we view this time we had left?

* * *

**(Stella's POV)**

I had cleaned mostly everything up and John was sitting in his armchair. I told him he wasn't allowed to clean and for once he listened. His head was thrown back against the chair and his eyes were closed. Part of me wished he had let his hair grow shaggy like it used to be, but he had kept it short. He was still holding his glass, though it was now resting on his knee. He was wearing a black button up with a red tie and black slacks. I couldn't help but smile as I watched him. I tried to convince him to wear his suit, but it didn't work. Instead he wore this outfit, which was nearly identical to what he worse for our senior year prom.

It was the only dance we had ever gone to together. It was right after the Joker riots and after Conner died. John had been between relationships and we thought it would be best if we went to our last dance together. Plus considering he was at our place most of the time during the riots it only seemed fair.

The riots had been scary for everyone. People were on an unofficial curfew and most teenagers and children were on lockdown. The only reason John was staying with us was because Father Riley had long since given my father his blessing to keep John around for as long as he wanted. John was past an age where anyone would adopt him and it was better off if his name was with St. Swithin's but he sometimes stayed elsewhere. Even with the lockdown, John ended up staying. I think aside from wanted to keep an eye on us, my father liked knowing that even while he was at work, I wouldn't be home alone. It never bothered him before, but I could see it in his eyes that leaving me along with riots going on caused him serious pain. Having John close by and keeping me safe put him at ease. I never really needed it, but I know it made my father, and John, feel better. That was all that mattered to me at the time. Plus it meant spending nights with my best friend watching movies and falling asleep on the couch.

I moved toward him and watched as he opened an eye. "Did the birthday boy enjoy his night?"

John moved forward and put his glass on the side table before pulling me toward him. I perched on the arm of the chair, leaving my legs between his. He gave a groan and kicked his shoes off. "As much as I hate to admit it, I did have a good night. It was good to have everyone relax for a bit." He squeezed my knee. "And seeing you extra dressed up was nice."

I brushed my fingers against his chest. He had loosened his tie and popped the top two buttons of his shirt. "You clean up pretty well too, John."

He smiled and kissed the palm of my hand. "You know. I don't believe I got a birthday present from you."

I gave him a light kiss and tapped his nose. "Dressing up was your present." I grabbed his glass and headed back to the kitchen.

John wrapped and arm around my waist pulling me against him. He kissed the side of my neck and wrapped me in his scent. "Does that mean I get to unwrap you?"

I turned to face him and wrapped my arms around his neck. "That was the general idea."

John smiled and pulled me closer, his hands sliding to my ass. "You are my favourite present."

I laughed against his lips as his hands moved to the hem of my skirt, brushing against the back of my legs. I felt his fingertips touch the back of my thighs, where the slit in the back of my skirt was. "I know what you're thinking. It's your birthday, John. Just remember that you will owe me a skirt."

A laugh rumbled through his chest. "That sounds fair enough." I felt his arms tighten against me and he yanked at the slit in my skirt. A moment later there was a rip that filled the silence of the apartment.

It was a good thing the skirt zipped on the side. Tearing my skirt had been clean and the torn fabric pooled around my feet. I looked up at John under my lashes as his gaze wandered down. So maybe there was a bit more to his birthday present. John had a soft spot for pin ups, something we shared, though for slightly different reasons. Underneath the skirt was a bit of old school lingerie. The garter belt was black with a few simple designs that sprawled across the top of my hips. The straps were hooked into the lace top thigh highs that looks pretty good against my skin in my opinion.

John seemed to agree as he was holding the ends of my blouse high on my waist. Or it could have been the fact I had decided panties were unnecessary tonight.

I wrapped my hands around his wrists and cleared my throat, trying to draw his attention back to my face. I suddenly felt very unsure of myself. "Happy Birthday?"

John pressed me hard against the counter and took hold of my chin. His voice was low and sent a chill down my spine. "A very, very happy birthday to me."

John crashed his lips against mine and my hands gripped his shoulders. I slid them to his neck, undoing the knot in his tie. I wrapped the ends around my hands and pulled him harder against me. He responded by lifting me by my ass and sitting me on the counter top of the kitchen's island.

John pulled back from my lips. His fingers carefully began unbuttoning my blouse as he spoke. "You are the best thing that has ever happened to me. You know that right? Without meeting you I never would have pushed myself to do things." He sucked my bottom lip as he pushed the blouse off my shoulders.

I slid the tie from around his neck as I tossed my blouse behind him. While the garter belt was simple, the bra was a bit more decorative. The black bra had red lace designs over it, drawing the eye in. I draped John's tie around my neck with a smile. "I have heard this speech before, John. And you know that I am thankful for you every day. Have been since I was a kid. But, we're not kids anymore. And I would appreciate focusing on the present right now. Preferably with less clothing." I popped a few more of the buttons on his shirt, yanking it out of his pants.

John tossed his shirt with mine and pulled his undershirt over his head, adding it to the growing pile. John nudged me to lie back and stood between my legs. I lifted myself up by my elbows a bit watching him. A warmth was already spreading through me and he hadn't even touched me yet. If I was honest, I had been thinking about this all night and I wasn't ready to wait anymore.

John snapped one of the straps of my garters watching me. He bent his head down and kissed the inside of my thigh. I felt heat creep into my cheeks and he laughed.

The sex had been great, it really had been, but there had not been this kind of teasing before. I wasn't sure if I was upset he had been holding out on me, or excited that he had been waiting.

John bit a spot an inch above where he kissed me and I jumped a bit. "Stella, did you know that you blush when you're excited? Not just your face. I can see the heat in your chest, but now I see that your thighs blush too. I've always liked how fair your skin was, but now I think I like it a little more."

He slid me closer to him, hands gripping my thighs. John moved on of his hands and pressed a finger to part my lips. He was still watching me intently and I watched as he started slide his middle finger inside of me. I felt myself tense up around his finger as he began moving it inside of me. He moved his head down and flicked his tongue out against my clit. I bit my lip and pressed my head against the counter. It may have been one touch, but John staring at me intensified things. He had dangerous bedroom eyes that even the brush of his fingers made me weak in the knees.

When I moved down, John took that as indication to do as he pleased. He moved his finger inside me swiftly, increasing speed. His sucked my clit as his other hand gripped my thigh to keep me in place. I would be lying if I said I hadn't been a little bit wet when John ripped my skirt off. If he kept this up I was going to be his own personal rag doll.

John slid his finger outside of me and gave an appreciative sound as he moved his mouth away from me. I went to lean up, but his mouth was back on me. Though, now his tongue slid inside of me. Words flew up from my throat, but only a gasp moved past my lips. John had two fingers rolling and pinching my clit as his tongue continued exploring me.

My hips were rising against him and my hands found their way to his hair, tugging it and pressing him closer against me. Letting his hair grow just a bit was very helpful right now. A heat was spreading throughout my stomach already, surprising me a bit, though I was far from complaining. John's hand left its place teasing me and gripped my hips roughly to keep me in place. My hands moved from his hair to squeeze his hands on my hips. I would try to help keep them down, but fighting the urge not to buck was growing a little too strong. My breath was shaky and I started whimpering as his teeth grazed my clit.

"John. I…I don't want you to stop. Please." It was hard to get those words out and I fought with myself to say them. This was his birthday, not mine, but hell if I would turn over him giving me an early orgasm.

John seemed to understand this and dug his fingers into my skin. He was going to leave a trail of bruises on me before he even got his pants off. He tugged my clit with his teeth and a cry erupted from my throat. Every bit of my body was buzzing, like an electrical current was let loose under my skin. I could still feel John's tongue lapping at me, but it felt a bit far away. My hands feel from his, one resting at my stomach, the other over my closed eyes.

There was a buzzing in my ears, but I could not be bothered with it. John had recently found out that though I was decently experienced, I had never had anyone go down on me. He was appalled and tried to remedy things right after he found out, but I had stopped him with a laugh. It didn't matter to me that much. Of course, after tonight, maybe it would mean a little more.

"Stella?" John's voice brought me to the present.

I blinked and moved to my elbows, seeing a smirk on his face. He looked very pleased with himself. I cleared my throat as he pulled me up. "Yes?"

John laughed and kissed me with force. I could taste myself on him and couldn't help but feel excited. He reached a hand behind me and pulled the elastic out of my hair, letting it fall down my back. John ran a hand through my hair. "You okay?"

"More than okay." I pressed my cheek against his, speaking softly in his ear. "I thought tonight was your birthday?"

John chuckled and kissed my temple. "It is. Call that a little ego boost on my part. You're the present that keeps on giving."

"Oh, I am, am I?" I looked at him with a smile. I slid off the counter pressing myself against him. I wasn't entirely surprised to find out he was already quite hard. I put a finger to his chest and pressed him back, walking him toward his favourite chair. I was about to push him down, but I paused and grabbed his belt. I unhooked it with a smile. "I think the belt and pants need to go. You're a bit overdressed this evening."

John smiled down at me and complied with stepping out of his pants and kicking them to the side. His thumbs hooked into his boxer briefs, but I stopped him. He raised an eyebrow at me. "Problem?"

I pushed his hands to his sides, tugging at the band of his briefs. "It's my turn to get rid of some of your clothes, sweetheart."

John's lips twitched into a wider smile and held his hands up in defeat. "Whatever you say, darling."

I pursed my lips together trying not to laugh as I yanked his briefs down. A moment later I pushed against his chest, knocking him into the chair. He landed with an "Oof", but was still smiling.

I knelt down, pulling his briefs off and tossing them back toward the kitchen. I moved between his knees and smiled up at John. I took hold of him and began stroking him slowly. "Comfy?"

John was silent, but his eyes told me that teasing him could be extra dangerous tonight.

I squeezed John at his base and increased my pace, properly pumping him. My free hand drew lines inside of John's thigh moving up toward his stomach. I loved tracing his muscles and delighted in the way they tightened under my touch. My eyes fell down to the task at hand and I noticed a bit of precum at his tip. Bowing my head I licked it off, heading a slight hiss from John. I smiled to myself as my hair fell around my face. Keeping rhythm I lowered my lips to his tip, swirling my tongue around it.

John's hand reached toward me, gathering up my hair and holding it back. He was watching me with slightly parted lips. I could feel him twitching beneath mine and knew that this foreplay wouldn't last too long. John was eager for more aggressive, and fulfilling fun.

I took more of John in me little by little, breaking eye contact for a bit. I pressed my hands against his thighs, focusing my attention. The sex was incredible for a number of reasons. Firstly, John and I were incredibly close to the passion had always been ready. Secondly, we ready each other's bodies extraordinarily well. Thirdly, we had a lot to work with. John was big. Big and thick. And the first night we had sex, I don't think I appreciated it so much since I was basically an icicle. After the first night, however, John learned full well how much I appreciated him. I wasn't foolish enough to think it was a one sided appreciation. I knew how he looked at me. There was a longing and a want in his eyes whenever I was nearby. His hands always searched my body like it was a map he needed to explore. No woman could ask for a better ego boost than witnessing the anticipation and need in a man's eyes when she was naked.

"Fuck." The word flew out of John's lips and he pulled my hair. He was throbbing against my lips and I slipped him out of my mouth, making eye contact again. John pulled me up by my shoulders until I was on his lap. His hand flicked the clasp on my bra and threw it blindly. His hands moved up my waist and cupped them with force, slowly moving his eyes back to mine. There was a silent question in them, but I was not too sure what it was.

"John?" My voice was breathy, but still held a question.

He didn't say anything. Instead he crashed his lips against mine and stood up bringing me with him. My legs were wrapped around his waist and my arms tight around his neck as he pressed us against the wall next to his bedroom. He pressed my back against the wall, his arm under my ass, and he started sliding into me. I pressed my forehead against his a little gasp coming out as he slid all the way in. Once inside he tightened his grip on me and pressed his other hand against the wall for support. My heels hooked behind his knees as I stretched against him glad he was the one holding me up.

John's lips were against my shoulder and his breathing was steady. There was a tightening in my stomach as John pushed into me.

My lips traced the curve of his ear. "John. Don't slow. Whatever you do, don't slow down."

John bit down on my shoulder earning a little cry from me. His face appeared in front of mine. "Faster?"

I pressed my lips against his. "Faster."

"As you wish." His lips formed a smile as he roughly kissed me. He slammed into me and swallowed any response from me against his lips.

I dragged my nails against his shoulder blades, arching my back further. I ran my tongue over his bottom lip, biting down. I needed a moment to catch my breath. I was getting dizzy and felt a fire between my legs. John was outdoing himself tonight and I loved it.

John traced his lips down my chin and to my throat. He lightly bit the skin, making me shake against him. He buried his face against the curve of my neck. He slowed his pace, making his strokes painfully slow. I made an unhappy noise, which earned me a short laugh from John. "Christ, Stella. You will be the death of me, I swear. But…" He slammed into me once more and things shattered around me.

I was panting as John swung us both from the wall and onto his bed. I crawled toward the head of his bed, going on my knees and pressed my face against a pillow. John came from behind me, hands on my hips. He slid into me, easier this time and picked up his pace. With the way his fingers curled into me, I knew he was close to his finish. I bit hard into the pillow as he moved faster, listening to his breathing turn into short grunts.

John began draping himself over me, his hands moving from my hips and slid up my sides. He cupped my breasts and squeezed them roughly. I wiggled against him, encouraging him to continue. John's strokes were getting longer letting me know he was dragging this out as much as he could. Yet, with all of this he thought that _I_ would be the death of _him_. Go figure.

John's fingers started squeezing harder than I was used to and I was gasping against the pillow, turning my face to gulp the air. "Please…John…"

John's hips started quivering and before I knew it, I felt him burst inside of me. His hands dropped from my breasts and pressed against the mattress.

I breathed a soft sigh of relief and slid him out of me, rolling him to lay beside me. There was not a single part of my body that wasn't on fire right now. I would be sore as hell tomorrow, but there would be no complaining.

John had a hand pressed against his stomach and the other stretched out to touch me. His eyes were focused on the ceiling and his chest was rising and falling at a steady rate. He let out a slow breath as I curled against his side, letting him wrap an arm around me. "Stella?"

I placed my chin against his chest, tracing the line of his jaw with my eyes. "Mmmhm?"

"I think this has been my favourite birthday ever."

I pressed my face against his chest and couldn't help but laugh. "Well, I am very glad for that. I knew it would be memorable regardless. You know. The whole siege thing, but I'm glad it's for more than just that."

John squeezed me. "Smartass." He stretched his legs and kissed the top of my head.

I tapped his chest making him look at me. "John. What's on your mind?"

His eyes searched my face and I saw a glimpse of that question from earlier in them. "What do you mean?"

"You wanted to say something earlier. What was it?"

John brushed some of my hair behind my ear. "I didn't think saying it before was right…" His voice trailed off and he just kept stroking my hair.

"John, you're making me nervous."

He met my eyes again, this time looking serious. "You should be. I love you."

Maybe I should have shot up and sat up staring with my mouth open. Maybe, but I wasn't that dramatic. Instead I kissed him. I pressed my lips against him as hard as I could without climbing on top of him. John's arms had snaked around me, seeming reassured. I broke the kiss and smiled at him. "It is about damn time you admitted that, John." I pressed a finger to his lips and my voice grew a bit softer. "I love you too, John. With all I have, I do."

John's body seemed to relax against me. "Good, because you cannot get rid of me, Stella. I love you. I'm in love with you and that's the most important thing right now."

My chest swelled at his words. He was in love with me. "What more could I ever ask than to have my best friend tell me that he's in love with me?"

"Nothing. Nothing more to ask for." John kissed the top of my head and paused. "Well, maybe a shower. I could use a shower right about now."

I laughed. "I would tell you that you just ruined a wonderful moment, but now that you've said it a shower does sound pretty wonderful right now. Though you're going to have to carry me. I don't think I'm going to be able to walk the ten feet to your bathroom."

John laughed and slid to the floor holding out a hand to me. "They say that flattery doesn't get you anywhere. In this case, it worked and will earn you a trip to the shower."

I smiled and moved toward John's outstretched arms, allowing him to press me against him. "You do have to promise me something though."

"Oh? And what is that?"

"You need to let me get my baring before fooling around in the shower. And let me have a real shower after that."

John had a devilish smile on his face. "I make no promises. It's still my birthday for another hour."

I wrapped my arms around his neck loving the smile on his face. "Plan on celebrating it into tomorrow?"

"I plan on celebrating it until I cannot move anymore."

"Good thing I planned on working from home tomorrow." I paused. This was home now. Home was with John. My best friend. The man who was in love with me. The man who was carrying me to his shower and would most likely make love to me until there were no chances of walking back to bed. This was home.

I gave him a gentle kiss, hoping he understood how much it meant to me to call this place home. "Happy Birthday, John."

John nudged the bathroom door with his hip and smiled. "Thank you Stella. Welcome home."


End file.
